ONGC staff abducted in Assam
Three employees of State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) on Wednesday were abducted by unknown armed militants from a rig site in Sivasagar district of Assam, the company said.
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New Delhi: Three employees of State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) on Wednesday were abducted by unknown armed militants from a rig site in Sivasagar district of Assam, the company said. The militants, suspected to be belonging to banned ULFA (I) group, abducted the employees in a company vehicle from the Lakwa field in Sivasagar district. The vehicle was later found abandoned near the Nimonagarh jungle close to the Assam-Nagaland border.
A senior ONGC official said the company has filed a complaint with the local police and beefed up security at installations in Assam. "A high-level review of security of employees and their families has been held and we are taking additional measures," the official said, refusing to elaborate on steps being taken. "We are also taking help from local police." ONGC has around 2,000 employees, officers and support staff in the Sivasagar asset. Whereabouts of the kidnapped employees were not known, and kidnappers have not made any contact with the families or the company so far, the official said.
"Three ONGC employees, two junior engineer assistants (Production) and a junior technician (Production) have been abducted by unknown armed miscreants in the early hours of 21 April 2021. The abduction took place on a rig site of ONGC in Lakwa field of Sivasagar District," the company said in a tweet. All three employees are local Assamese. They have been identified as M M Gogoi and Ritul Saikia both junior engineer assistants (production) and Alakesh Saikia, a junior technician (production). "The abducted employees were taken by the miscreants in an operational vehicle belonging to ONGC. Later, the vehicle was found abandoned near the Nimonagarh jungles close to the Assam-Nagaland border," ONGC said in another tweet.
"A complaint has been lodged by ONGC with the local police." ONGC has been exploring and producing oil and gas in the Upper Assam region since the early 1960s. "Higher officials of the State Police are on the site. Local administration has been informed about the incident and ONGC is in constant touch with the higher authorities," it added. The official said, ONGC has made contact with the families of the abducted and is providing every possible assistance.
