Denied leave, labourers flee road construction project; one drowns in river

The body of one of the 19 missing labourers was found in a river in Arunachal Pradeshs Kurung Kumey district, an official said on Tuesday.

Nineteen labourers engaged in the construction of the BROs strategic Damin-Huri Road along the India-China border fled from the project site on July 5 after they were denied leave for Eid by the contractor, Kurung Kumeys deputy commissioner Nighee Bengia said.

The labourers, who hail from Assam, might have taken a different route through the jungle and it is suspected that one of them accidentally fell into the Kumey river, he said.

Dismissing a viral audio clip in which it was claimed that 16 bodies were seen floating on the river, Bengia said so far one body has been found.

The project site is in Damin circle, about 200 km from Koloriang, the district headquarters, he said.

“The circle officer of Koloriang has been directed to visit Damin and take stock of the situation. The officer has also been directed to verify if other labourers have drowned,” he added.

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