Editor,

The Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) is a massive hydroelectric dam proposed for the Siang River with an installed capacity of approximately 11,000-12,500 MW, its construction would pose an existential threat to the ancestral lands, culture, livelihoods, and even the ethnic identity of the local Adi people.

They revere it as Aane Siang or Ane Siang - Mother Siang - the sacred lifeline that sustains their agriculture, traditional knowledge, spiritual practices, and collective identity linked to their primordial ancestor Abo Tani. For generations, the Adi have lived in harmony with this river through sophisticated terraced wet-rice cultivation, jhum farming, orchards, and intricate ecological knowledge systems involving over 250 species of plants and animals.

Community estimates indicate that the project's reservoir could submerge around 27 villages, affect dozens more, and displace or severely disrupt the lives of 100,000 to 150,000 indigenous people. Fertile ancestral lands, paddy fields, homes, and historical sites risk permanent inundation. Once lost, these cannot be replaced by monetary compensation. The Adi fear not only physical displacement but the erasure of their cultural continuity, customary institutions (kebang), and right to self-determination. The project has proceeded amid serious concerns about the absence of free, prior, and informed consent of the affected communities.

Traditional bodies and the Siang Indigenous Farmers' Forum (SIFF), along with village councils, have consistently opposed it. The deployment of security forces to facilitate surveys has only deepened fear and distrust among the people. While national interests in energy security, flood moderation, and strategic water management are acknowledged, these cannot be pursued at the irreversible cost of an indigenous people's homeland and way of life.

Past experiences with large dams in the Northeast have shown that displacement often leads to long-term socio-economic and cultural disruption that compensation packages fail to address. We therefore earnestly appeal for the following: Immediate suspension of all pre-feasibility surveys, construction-related activities, and deployment of security forces in the Siang Valley for the SUMP.

Full respect for the free, prior, and informed consent of the Adi people as mandated under national and international standards for indigenous rights. Transparent, independent and participatory assessment of social, cultural, environmental and seismic impacts involving genuine community representatives. Exploration of alternative development models that do not require the submergence of ancestral lands or the desecration of Mother Siang. Protection of the Adi people's constitutional and customary rights over their land, forests, and cultural heritage.

Anonymous