Itanagar, October 6: An Assistant Commandant of the Central Reserve Police Force sustained grievous injuries after protesters opposed to the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) allegedly attacked security personnel with machetes, lathis and other sharp weapons at Ugeng in Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh, the district administration has confirmed.
The officer, of the 174th Battalion, was referred to Delhi for specialised treatment. Several other security personnel also suffered serious injuries. The administration has not released the officer’s name. No fatality has been reported.
How the clash unfolded
According to the Siang district administration, the violence broke out at the entry point to the Pre-Feasibility Report (PFR) survey site on the Siang river, about three kilometres from the main road. A group allegedly assaulted personnel at the site with machetes and other sharp objects and damaged property.
At the Ugeng entry point, people from surrounding areas gathered and pelted stones. Three houses were set on fire and tents occupied by CRPF personnel were damaged. The administration said security forces maintained restraint and tried to reason with those gathered, after which the mob turned violent and attacked personnel with machetes and lathis.
The situation was later brought under control. Clashes were also reported from Riga village during the same round of PFR-related activity.
A subsequent report in Hindustan Times, quoting Siang Superintendent of Police Kamdam Sikom, said more than eight security personnel were injured and five people, including two women, had been arrested. Circle Officer Kalong Tasing was quoted as saying that about 100 to 150 people, some allegedly armed with daos, charged towards personnel roughly two to two-and-a-half kilometres from the PFR site. The police account referred to Saturday’s clashes at Uggeng, while the district administration’s confirmation of the machete attack and the officer’s evacuation was issued on Monday. Authorities have not issued a consolidated casualty list.
Minister appeals for peace
Home and Inter-State Border Affairs Minister Mama Natung condemned the attack on paramilitary personnel at Riga and asked protesters not to take the law into their own hands.
“The attack on paramilitary forces at Riga village of Siang is condemnable and I urge all to maintain peace,” he said. He described the PFR as a technical survey only. “The PFR is just a survey to know the capacity and feasibility. If found negative, we can abolish the project.” He added that only peace can bring development, and asked anti-dam groups to place their grievances before the government.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu has taken the same line. During a visit to Boleng on September 29, he said the project would not proceed if experts found it technically unviable after the PFR, and that the survey was not a decision to build the dam. He has also said the public, including landowners, would have a say.
Why the survey is opposed
The SUMP is a proposed multipurpose project on the Siang, the principal channel of the Brahmaputra after it enters India, with a commonly cited capacity of about 11,000 MW. The state government says the PFR is only an initial technical assessment and does not amount to approval for construction. It has argued that storage on the Siang could support power generation, water security and regulation of sudden upstream flows.
Sections of the indigenous Adi community, including groups linked to the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum, have opposed the survey. They cite possible displacement, loss of ancestral and customary land, impact on livelihoods and cultural identity, and environmental consequences in the Siang basin. Protest calls have included an immediate halt to survey work, withdrawal of central forces, and consultation before any further step. Estimates of the population that could be affected if the project is eventually built have been placed by opponents at a very large scale; the government has not treated the PFR as a final displacement plan.
Tension has built since mid-September, when police and central armed police were deployed towards Ugeng and Komkar, among the sites identified for the study. Villagers blocked roads and stopped machinery. On September 30, during the Chief Minister’s visit to Yingkiong, protesters blocked the Yingkiong–Komkar–Geku stretch, and the residence of Tuting–Yingkiong MLA Alo Libang was allegedly vandalised. Media bodies in the state have since objected to reported restrictions on coverage of the project.
Security and civil authorities say they are monitoring the area and taking steps to prevent a further escalation. The exact number of injured protesters has not been officially confirmed.
