After kidnappings, NHAI work on hold

While the project manager hails from Bihar, the rest of the NHAI team is from Assam itself. The contractors in the area have been on strike since then and have refused to resume work until ‘pro-active security arrangements’ are made to protect their workers. The area is already quite unpopular with contractors.

“We are extremely anxious. Five of our people have been missing for nearly a month now and there is still no news regarding their whereabouts. Their family members are traumatised and all our workers are very disturbed by the incident. This was our second project in Assam and though we were aware that North Cachar area had some insurgency problems, we never anticipated something like this. We really do not what to do now,” says Dinesh Valecha, Director, Valecha Engineering.

While the contractors working in the area had met officials from the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways on the issue soon after the kidnappings and requested action, they are yet to get a response.

“We had told the ministry that it is impossible to work in this situation. This is a serious threat and we need help,” says Valecha. NHAI officials confirmed that work had come to a complete halt along the East-West corridor since the kidnappings.

Calling it a major problem, a senior officer said: “There is still no news of the five kidnapped people. The issue is under investigation and the ministry has raised the issue with the Chief Secretary of Assam. The incident has had a very demoralising effect on contractors engaged by the NHAI across the East-West corridor. They have said either work should be suspended in the disturbed NC hills area or just closed. Officials from the Railways are also feeling highly vulnerable.” Eleven Railway employees were killed in the same area in October 2006.

The kidnappings of the engineers, in fact, had come soon after the killing of an engineer engaged by the NHAI in January this year, and after the militant attack on a contractor’s camp in the Maibong hills of North Cachar in Assam that left an engineer killed and two injured on December 7, 2006. On the ministry’s request, the Prime Minister had last year cleared the creation of a 1,000 strong dedicated force drawn from ex-servicemen for the insurgency-hit area.

The NHAI managed to put together almost 500 people but even that does not seem to be helping. Besides, 200 CRPF personnel are stationed at contractor camps across the highway.

The NHAI has projects worth some Rs 6,000 crore stretching across 678 km in Assam and is currently in the thick of construction activity across 200 km that it has to four-lane.