Suspected NDFB militants abduct civil engineer in Assam - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Despite several appeals and protests, militancy in the north-east of the country hasn't stopped. The latest incident involves the kidnapping of a civil engineer in Assam. The abduction of Polagani Krishna Rao has disappointed locals and left his family distraught. Suspected National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) militants kidnapped Rao, a civil engineer from Krishna District of Andhra Pradesh, on October 16 from his residential quarters in Kokrajhar, which is about 220 kilometres from Assam capital Dispur. The militants are yet to come forward with their demands. His family, however, are a worried lot. The Assam Government has assured the Andhra Pradesh Government that efforts are being made to trace Rao. "I have spoken to Mr. Gogoi. He assured me that he would set up a special team to trace Krishna Rao. I think they are doing it," said K Rosaiah, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister after being apprised of the incident. Krishna Rao is working as a project manager with Gayatri Constructions Limited, an infrastructure firm, for the last 10 years. Before his kidnapping, he was engaged in executing a project on National Highway No. 37 in Assam. Locals have appealed for the engineer's safe release. "Companies are afraid to come to Assam due to the fear that they would be kidnapped. We condemn the kidnapping of the civil engineer and appeal that it does not happen again. The road projects have been stopped and projects are not going forward. This is causing immense difficulty to the public. We want development, vehicles to ply in the villages, companies to come up to generate employment but such incidents have hampered development and the people," said Mousam Dutta, a local resident. This is the second incident where an official of a construction company has been kidnapped from the Bodoland Territorial Council area in Assam. Several firms engaged in the construction work in the state have left Assam fearing attacks as militants slapped heavy extortion demands on the companies. Militancy has become a stumbling block to progress in Assam.