As soon as a project is dubbed strategic, questions start to sound like sabotage. That is the argument that is now being used to justify the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (Siang Upper) of 11,200 MW in the Siang Valley.
The worry is legitimate. China is constructing a mega-dam upstream on the Yarlung Tsangpo, and Chief Minister Pema Khandu believes that the Siang project could help to soften sudden surges. However, a legitimate concern does not constitute an excuse to circumvent the will of the people whose land and river are at stake.
On Earth, it’s a form of force. Meanwhile, 30 companies of CAPF have been deployed in various protest affected districts, despite Khandu’s assurance that the project is not under compulsion and only a pre-feasibility study has been initiated. There is no way to guarantee consent when setting up paramilitaries at survey sites.
The cost is already on the bill. During the bandh, on 23rd October, at least four women were injured by police using tear gas. In Pasighat, that night, government offices and police cars burned. The arson is to be condemned, but it came after over a year of peaceful protest that was not met by real dialogue from the state. Mongabay also reports the filing of FIR that the foreign money is used to fuel the agitation, a tactic that has been often used to convert a local grievance into a security issue.
This is compounded by the legal context. The Gauhati High Court in 2022 had cancelled all 44 proposed dams on the Siang and today’s deployment is a step to the contrary, says the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum. Delhi and Itanagar are ruled by the BJP, which has not clarified why it is going ahead with the project before the Adi communities have informed consent.
If the dam is really ensuring the nation’s safety, the government should show proof of it. Make a flood-cushion analysis available for publication. Consider having an independent seismic and environmental check-up. Engage in water diplomacy with Beijing and Dhaka, in addition to construction. Cease the paramilitary build-up until villagers are listened to.
A dam protected by a force of 30 companies of paramilitary troops, before it’s even surveyed, is a failure of strategy.
