Anti-mega dam protest rocks Arunachal capital

More than 30 people were detained after a violent protest in the State’s Siang region on October 23 and 24 against the proposed 11,200-megawatt Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) on the Siang River. File | Photo Credit: Reuters

Members of several youth and social organisations carried out a solidarity rally in Arunachal Pradesh’s capital, Itanagar, on Thursday (October 29, 2026), demanding the release of people detained for opposing the push for a mega dam as a counter to China’s massive hydropower project on the Yarlung Tsangpo.

Also read | Violence marks shutdown against another proposed dam in Arunachal Pradesh

More than 30 people were detained after a violent protest in the State’s Siang region on October 23 and 24 against the proposed 11,200-megawatt Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) on the Siang River. Locals say the project would spell disaster for the land and its people, but the government claims it would minimise the impact of a 60,000-MW project China is building across the border.

The Yarlung Tsangpo flows into Arunachal Pradesh as the Siang, which meets the Dibang and Lohit to form the Brahmaputra in Assam.