Mobile internet services have been suspended across Arunachal Pradesh’s Upper Siang district as protests against the proposed 11,200-MW Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) intensified on Monday.
The suspension comes amid a 36-hour bandh called by the Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum (SIFF) and the SUMP Affected Area Youth Association (SAAYA), supported by several student bodies and community organisations. The shutdown, which began at 5 am, is being observed across Upper Siang, Siang and East Siang districts.
The protesting organisations are demanding the immediate release of activists detained during the anti-dam agitation and a halt to ongoing pre-feasibility survey activities in areas likely to be affected by the project.
Opposition to the proposed hydropower project has been mounting in recent months, with local groups alleging that survey work is being carried out without the consent of indigenous communities. Protesters have also objected to the deployment of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel in project-affected regions.
In a communication to the Bogum Bokang Welfare Society, SAAYA said representatives from affected villages unanimously decided during an emergency meeting on October 29 to organise the bandh jointly with SIFF and other local organisations.
The organisations described the arrest of protesters as an attempt to suppress indigenous voices and appealed to residents to participate in the agitation through peaceful and democratic means.
Local communities fear that the project could lead to large-scale displacement, loss of agricultural land and forests, and disruption of traditional livelihoods. Reports indicate that at least 27 villages face the threat of submergence, while several others may also be impacted.
Planned on the Siang River, the proposed project is expected to generate 11,200 MW of electricity, making it one of India’s largest hydropower initiatives.
The project has also gained strategic importance due to China’s plans to build a massive hydropower facility on the Yarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet, which flows into India as the Siang River.
Tensions escalated in September and October as resistance to preliminary survey activities intensified. Protesters maintained that affected communities had not granted consent for the surveys and opposed the presence of security forces deployed to facilitate the process.
Following incidents of violence, including attacks on vehicles and public property, authorities increased security measures and carried out arrests and preventive detentions. The district administration also imposed restrictions on public gatherings on October 11.
Several community organisations have since demanded the release of detained activists, withdrawal of security personnel and suspension of survey activities.
The state government has maintained that the current exercise is only a preliminary assessment and does not amount to final approval of the dam project. The Centre had earlier informed Parliament that the project remains at the investigation stage and would require environmental clearances before any construction work begins.
