Siang Dam Row: China’s ‘Water Bomb’, Arunachal Protest, Brahmaputra Battle | Abhijit Iyer-Mitra

As China builds a mega dam upstream in Tibet, India’s proposed Siang dam in Arunachal has triggered fierce protests from the indigenous Adi community. Is the Siang project India’s answer to China’s plans on the Brahmaputra - or an ecological disaster? And is the real threat from China’s “water bomb”, or potential water diversion? In this episode of ‘Why Should You Care?’ Aditi Prasad speaks with Abhijit Iyer-Mitra about the Siang dam controversy, China’s water strategy, the Adi community’s opposition, Pema Khandu’s position and Beijing’s “salami tactics” along the Brahmaputra. 00:00 Why the Adi Community Is Protesting 01:37 India's Siang Dam: A National Security Imperative? 02:23 Why Should Indians Care About the Siang Dam? 03:21 Why the Siang Dam Project Is Unfeasible 04:09 China's Mega Dam: What Is the Real Threat? 04:46 How Dams Threaten Assam's Fertile Soil and Food Security 05:46 Can Dams Really Prevent Floods? 07:12 China's Dam Infrastructure Explained 08:06 The Water Diversion Threat to India 08:34 Why Assam Depends on Water From Tibet 09:49 Is China's Mega Dam a Water Bomb? 10:52 Does India's Siang Dam Make Strategic Sense? 11:23 Why the Adi Community Opposes the Project 12:51 China's Water Diversion: India's Real Concern 13:42 China's Salami-Slicing Strategy 14:24 Could China Block India's Rivers? 15:45 The Seismic Risks of China's Mega Dam 17:32 Why Is China Building Such a Massive Dam? 18:53 The Government's Failure to Engage the Adi Community 20:03 Is the Siang Dam Protest a Governance Failure? 21:03 Why the Adi Community's Population Matters 22:12 Why India's Dam Is Not an Answer to China's Plans 22:55 China's Border Infrastructure Build-Up in Arunachal 23:37 Is China Strengthening Its Position Along the LAC? 24:41 Why India Needs Better Border Infrastructure 25:19 India's Border Strategy: Incompetence or Genius? #SiangDam #ArunachalPradesh #China #Brahmaputra #AbhijitIyerMitra #WhyShouldYouCare AXIS is where the world is explained through India’s lens. For decades, global narratives have been shaped by Western media... told through Washington, London or Beijing. But as India rises as a major economic, military and diplomatic power, why should others define the world for us? Why shouldn’t India shape its own voice, own perspective, and own narrative? That’s where AXIS comes in. We decode global power shifts, wars and conflicts, the India-China rivalry, Pakistan, West Asia, oil shocks, trade battles and neighbourhood politics - with one key question: What does this mean for India and for you? As India rises, so should its share of voice! Subscribe To AXIS — The World Through INDIA'S LENS. #India #Geopolitics #China #Pakistan #Bangladesh #WorldNews #Defence #IndianArmy #Indian Navy #IAF #TimesAXIS #TOI