The SUMP Affected Area Youth Association (SAAYA) calls for a shutdown on November 2 across three districts of Arunachal Pradesh in protest against arrests linked to opposition to the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP). The shutdown covers Siang, Upper Siang and East Siang districts, and is organised in coordination with the Siang Indigenous Farmer Forum (SIFF), other community-based organisations, youth groups and residents of the affected areas.
According to SAAYA, the decision follows an emergency executive meeting attended by representatives of villages affected by the proposed project. In a letter to the Bogum Bokang Welfare Society (BBWS), which represents the Bogum Bokang-Tuting area, the youth body appeals for support for the protest and urges that it remain peaceful and democratic.
Arrests, surveys and security deployment at the centre
SAAYA says the shutdown protests the arrest of people involved in the movement opposing the project, and points in particular to alleged forced surveys and the deployment of Central Armed Police Forces personnel in project-affected areas. The organisation describes the arrests as an attempt to suppress the voices of indigenous communities.
Organisations associated with the movement demand the release of detained activists, the withdrawal of security personnel from the affected areas and a suspension of survey-related activities until community concerns are addressed. The state government, for its part, maintains that the ongoing exercise is a preliminary feasibility assessment and does not amount to a final decision to build the dam.
What the proposed project means for the Siang valley
The proposed 11,200-megawatt hydropower and multipurpose development on the Siang River is described as one of India’s largest hydropower initiatives. Supporters point to its long-term energy and water-management role, while opponents raise concerns about submergence of villages, displacement of families, loss of ancestral land and effects on agriculture, forests, biodiversity and traditional livelihoods.
Community representatives express fears that 27 villages could face complete submergence, with several dozen others facing varying degrees of impact. Those figures reflect concerns raised in connection with the project and are not presented as a final government-approved assessment of affected settlements.
Dialogue remains the unresolved question
The shutdown call comes as opposition to the project grows more organised across the affected districts, with SAAYA seeking to widen the movement beyond individual protest groups. Security has already been stepped up sharply at the Dite-Dime bridge in the Siang valley.
At the same time, Chief Minister Pema Khandu has sought to project calm on frontier questions facing the state. Whether the shutdown opens a fresh round of dialogue between the administration and affected communities, or deepens the standoff over surveys and arrests, remains the central question for the Siang valley.
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