Opponents of the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) have begun a 24-hour sit-in at Miracle Ground in Pasighat, pressing for an end to survey work, the release of people held in connection with the protests, and the withdrawal of central armed police forces from the area.
Four Demands on the Table
The Organising Committee of Save Siang, Save Indigenous Rights listed four demands for the dharna: no pre-feasibility report or survey, freedom for detained anti-dam activists, quashing of FIRs registered against protesters, and withdrawal of the Central Armed Police Forces. The committee said the protest speaks for Indigenous communities, families likely to be affected by the project and concerned citizens — a standoff that has already drawn international scrutiny.
Administration Sets Strict Conditions
The East Siang district administration granted permission for the gathering, with the order signed by in-charge Deputy Commissioner Jayanti Pertin. The gathering is limited strictly to the venue — no rally, procession or march beyond it — and violence, weapons and provocative speech are prohibited, according to the order. Organisers must share coordinators’ names and phone numbers with the Executive Magistrate and the Sub-Divisional Police Officer before the event begins, keep emergency access clear and leave the ground clean. The order makes no mention of the protesters’ demands.
Weeks of Tension Behind the Dharna
The sit-in follows weeks of tension. Hundreds of Adi villagers rallied in Geku in Upper Siang demanding the release of detained activists, after months of resistance to the survey work. Officials had ordered the preventive detention of four Geku men under a state law, saying FIRs were already registered but unlawful activities had continued. Five more activists were reportedly taken into custody in Pasighat, and their associates said they did not know where they were being held, according to the report. Protesters also allege a lathi-charge by police and paramilitary forces in Uggeng village days earlier — days after protesters reportedly attacked an MLA’s house and set vehicles alight during a visit by Chief Minister Pema Khandu.
Why the Project Is Contested
The project is still at the pre-feasibility stage and would need a Social Impact Assessment, an Environmental Impact Assessment and a Detailed Project Report before any construction could be considered. The state government says it is about storing and regulating water in the Siang basin, in view of China’s planned hydropower project upstream, while NHPC officials have pointed to flood moderation and water security. Protesters fear displacement, submerged villages and farmland, environmental damage, seismic risk and inadequate consultation.
The state government says it wants dialogue — the Chief Minister has already agreed to cut security deployment and withdraw FIRs and met the ABK Youth Wing and the Adi Students’ Union to hear their concerns. The Human Rights Alliance has separately sought a probe into a reported meeting between a former ABK chief and the Chief Minister over the project.
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