UPPER SIANG PROJECT -
GEOGRAPHY
News: Why locals are protesting
against the Upper Siang hydropower project in Arunachal Pradesh
What's in the news?
●
Activists are protesting against the Upper Siang
Hydropower Project in Arunachal.
Upper Siang Multipurpose
Storage Project:
●
The Upper Siang project is a proposed 11,000 MW
hydropower project on the Siang River in Arunachal
Pradesh.
Backdrop:
●
Initially proposed as two separate projects, it was
consolidated into one larger project in 2017,
to be built by the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), featuring a
300-metre high dam.
Strategic Importance:
●
The Upper Siang project is seen as a strategic move
to counter China's hydel projects on the
Tsangpo, particularly a 60,000 MW 'super dam' in Tibet's Medog county.
○
This super dam's capacity is nearly 3x that of the
Three Gorges Dam in China and is intended to divert water to northern China.
Environmental and Social
Concerns:
●
Anti-dam organizations express concerns about the
project's environmental and social impact in their memorandum.
●
The memorandum highlights the threat to delicate ecosystems, wildlife habitats, and biodiversity in
Arunachal Pradesh, which already hosts numerous dams.
●
The activists are particularly worried about the
displacement of communities, as the project could submerge over 300 villages of the Adi tribe, including the district
headquarters of Yingkiong.
●
Activists are also wary of the project's portrayal
as a national interest endeavor and are troubled by a provision in the Forest
(Conservation) Amendment Act, which exempts strategic projects within 100 km
from India's borders from clearance requirements.
Go back to basics:
Siang River:
●
The Siang, originating
near Mount Kailash in Tibet (Tsangpo), flows over 1,000 km eastward, enters
Arunachal Pradesh as the Siang, and later becomes
the Brahmaputra in Assam.