Arunachal: Seven out of 19 missing Assam labourers found alive

Seven of the 19 labourers, who went missing from a border road construction site in Arunachal Pradesh’s Kurung Kumey district on July 5, have been rescued.

According to the Kurung Kumey district administration, the labourers split into two groups after crossing the river and moved toward the mountains. However, they lost track in the mountainous terrain and dense jungles and went astray.

Speaking with EastMojo, deputy commissioner of Kurung Kumey Bengia Nighee said, “Seven of the missing labourers have been found. Four were spotted by the local villagers near the Furak river on Friday evening, while three were found in the same place on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday. However, one in this group of eight is yet to be recovered.”

“They are very weak and not even in a condition to speak. They are currently being treated at a government accommodation in the Damin subdivision. A medical team from Koloriang is also on their way to Damin to provide urgent medical treatment. We will be able to record their statement once they recover,” said Nighee.

“We are continuing our search operations to trace the remaining 12 people. The local police, Indian Air Force (IAF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), besides others, are engaged in the search and rescue operations. The local villagers and hunters, who are familiar with the terrain, have been assisting us,” he added.

The labourers were engaged in road construction for a project allegedly under the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) in the remote Huri area under the Damin subdivision. They left the camp for their homes without informing their contractors, who had allegedly denied them leave for Eid-al-Adha celebrations. They have been missing ever since they left their camp on July 5.

Extensive search operations were soon launched by the Arunachal Pradesh police with the help of locals to track them. The SDRF, ITBP and IAF later joined the search and rescue operations.

All of the labourers are from Assam. The majority hail from lower Assam districts, including Bongaigaon and Barpeta.

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