The Centre has sent two companies of the Rapid Action Force — about 250 personnel — to Arunachal Pradesh after mob violence in East Siang district. The forces were airlifted from Navi Mumbai by the Indian Air Force and reached Pasighat on October 25, as protests against a giant hydel project turned violent.
Updated: October 26, 2026, 10:25 IST
Quick Read:
- Two RAF companies, around 250 personnel, were airlifted from Navi Mumbai to Pasighat and deployed on October 25.
- The violence followed protests against the 11,200-MW Siang Upper Multipurpose Project.
- A mob torched an NHPC office and a police station, and vandalised the houses of three leaders, including the state BJP chief.
What happened on Friday night
The trouble broke out on Friday night in East Siang district. It came after a 12-hour shutdown called by protesters. A shutdown is a protest where shops stay closed and traffic stops, to show the strength of public feeling.
After the shutdown, a mob turned violent. It set fire to an office of the NHPC — the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation, the public-sector company linked to hydel projects. The mob also torched a police station.
The mob then vandalised the houses of three leaders, including the house of the state BJP chief. Vandalism of homes takes a protest into a different zone: it targets individuals and their families, not just offices or symbols.
Why people are protesting the dam
At the centre of the protests is the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project, a proposed hydel project with a capacity of 11,200 megawatts. That size would make it one of the biggest hydel projects in India.
The project is planned on the Siang river. The Siang flows through Arunachal Pradesh and later joins the Brahmaputra. For local people, the river is not just water and power — it is tied to land, homes, farms and a way of life.
Protesters fear displacement and submergence: that villages and farmland could be lost if a large dam and reservoir come up. Supporters of such projects point to power generation and flood control. That clash — development gains versus local losses — is what has fuelled the agitation in the Siang belt.
Also read: Tibet earthquake: 7-magnitude quake kills 16 | India vs New Zealand 1st T20I: record chase
RAF reaches Pasighat
The Centre’s response was fast. Two companies of the Rapid Action Force, around 250 personnel in total, were sent to the state. They were airlifted from Navi Mumbai by Indian Air Force aircraft and reached Pasighat, the headquarters town of East Siang district, on October 25.
So what is the RAF, in plain words? It is a special wing of the CRPF, the Central Reserve Police Force, trained to handle riots and mob violence. RAF units are called in when local police need backup to control crowds and restore order.
The choice of Pasighat matters. It is the district headquarters, so it is where the administration sits and where the violence struck. Landing forces there puts them at the centre of the trouble, not hours away by road.
What the chief minister said
Chief Minister Pema Khandu has spoken on the violence. His message draws a line: peaceful protest is part of democracy, but it must stay within the law. In other words, people can oppose the project, but torching offices and homes crosses the limit.
That line is the state government’s position in one sentence. It accepts protest as legitimate, and it rejects violence as a method. How that line is enforced on the ground — through arrests, talks, or both — will shape what comes next.
The state government also faces a harder question. The protest is not about one night of violence. It is about a project that many locals oppose. Force can restore calm for a few days, but it cannot settle the argument over the dam itself.
What happens next
The immediate job for the RAF and local police is to keep order in East Siang and prevent a second night of violence. The longer job belongs to the state government: talking to protest groups and addressing their fears about the project.
Whether the Siang Upper project moves ahead, changes shape, or stalls will depend on those talks — and on how much pressure the protests keep up. Large hydel projects in the Northeast have faced local opposition before, and several have been delayed for years.
For now, the concrete fact is this: about 250 RAF personnel are on the ground in Pasighat, deployed on October 25, after a Friday night in which an NHPC office, a police station and three leaders’ houses were attacked.
Also read: Jailer 2 Day 9 box office
FAQ
What is the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project?
It is a proposed hydel power project on the Siang river in Arunachal Pradesh, with a planned capacity of 11,200 megawatts. Protesters fear it could displace villages and submerge farmland.
What is the RAF?
The Rapid Action Force is a special anti-riot wing of the CRPF. It is trained to control mobs and restore order, and it is called in when local police need backup.
Why Pasighat?
Pasighat is the headquarters town of East Siang district, where the violence took place. The RAF companies were airlifted there from Navi Mumbai by the Indian Air Force and deployed on October 25.
