The Naharlagun bench of the Gauhati High Court on Monday accepted a petition seeking official recognition for communities living downstream of the 2,880 MW Dibang Multipurpose Hydro Project.
The petition was filed on February 13 by the Uttama Bor Abor Sanrakshana Sanrachana (UBSS), a registered public charitable trust in Arunachal Pradesh.
The petition urges that residents of Lower Dibang Valley and Assam’s Tinsukia-Sadiya region be included as Project Affected Families (PAFs), highlighting threats to their homes, farmland, and livelihoods, and seeking their inclusion for rehabilitation and compensation.
UBSS chairman Bigam Pertin said more than 75,000 affected people face possible threats from flooding and other project-related impacts, adding that they have been excluded from mitigation and resettlement plans despite clear evidence of their vulnerability.
“Our case rests on irrefutable facts, constitutional rights, and the hardships of over 75,000 people whose homes, farmlands, and futures are at stake,” Pertin said.
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The petition levels multiple allegations against authorities and the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC). These include the alleged arbitrary denial of PAF status to downstream communities despite official acknowledgements that inundation and flood risks could extend up to 63 km downstream.
It also raises concern on the alleged omission of a densely populated 45 km downstream stretch in the 2016 environmental impact study, lack of proper public consultations, and failure to secure tribal consent under the Forest Rights Act.
The trust also pointed out delays in constructing flood-protection embankments and implementing emergency response measures in the earthquake-prone region. It submitted community resolutions, signatures, and evidence documenting environmental degradation, dwindling fish stocks, unseasonal flooding, and falling agricultural productivity.
This legal move follows earlier protests by the Dibang Multipurpose Hydro Project Downstream Affected Area Committee. The committee pointed out that Rs 154 crore had already been allocated for these measures, but claimed that no tangible progress had been made even after the deadline had passed.
