No Dam, No Survey says Siang Farmers Forum, says dam will wash away 1.5 lakh population of state, talks with Arunachal govt fails

SIFF's opposition to the project is as much about environmental and social concerns as it is about the very existence of the people living in the districts

The talks between the Arunachal Government and the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum (SIFF) has failed and the Forum’s stiff opposition to the 11,000MW Upper Siang Multipurpose Storage project continues as the Forum strongly believes that the project will wipe out 1.5 lakh people of the state and including the entire Adi community living in the Siang and Upper Siang districts.

SIFF’s opposition to the project is as much about environmental and social concerns as it about the very existence of the people living in the districts where the project is proposed.

Speaking to Northeast Live, SIFF president Gegong Jijong said that the proposed dam would adversely impact the Siang and Upper Siang districts, threatening the existence of the Adi community.

“Siang and Upper Siang districts are the heart of the Adi community. The construction of the dam will submerge the two districts, thereby wiping out the Adi culture and tradition completely,” Jijong said.

SIFF held a meeting with Arunachal Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein today, which ended on an inconclusive note.

SIFF members informed that the deputy chief minister had proposed a pre-feasibility report and survey for the 11,000 MW project. However, the SIFF declined the proposal.

SIFF legal adviser Bhanu Tatak, speaking to Northeast Live, said that if the dam is built, it will lead to displacement of around 1.5 lakh people in Siang and Upper Siang.

“We were glad that the deputy chief minister agreed to today’s meeting. They were asking us to survey the dam, which is now almost 12,000 MW. Our message is clear- no dam, no survey. If the government goes ahead with the dam, then it is going to affect at least 1.5 lakh people, and the number could go up to 10 times more in the future,” Tatak said.

“If we are uprooted from the land, then it will be like the Chakma Hajong refugees. This is the kind of scenario we want to avoid,” she added.

Meanwhile, launching a scathing attack on Chief Minister Pema Kahndu, Tatak said that he had previously promised them that he would oppose the construction of the dam; however, his stance changed “after coming to power.”

“We have Chief Minister Pema Khandu on record saying that India is a democratic country and that they will not go ahead with the construction of the dam unless the locals agree to it. In fact, in 2018, he said that till he is the chief minister, dams will not be built in Siang. And now, immediately coming to power, he is contradicting his statements,” Tatak added.

“Chief Minister Pema Khandu, as per our observations, has always had two stances- one before election and one after it. Before the election, he opposed the construction of the dam, which changed to a pro-dam stance after winning the poll, and this has been repeated twice,” she said.

Meanwhile, SIFF also submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Chief Minister today, and the organisation will continue to engage with the government on the issue.

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