Road blockade at Digboi against Indian Oil Corporation

Our Correspondent

DIGBOI: Alleging the authority of Indian Oil Corporation, Assam Oil Division for the death of a youth during idol immersion at newly-erected Digboi immersion pond on Friday evening, the relatives of the deceased, in association with Puja Suraksha Samity and puja committees in Digboi, resorted to road blockade here at Digboi Charali police point.

Staging protest with the corpse, hundreds of people and members of local organizations held the AOD authority responsible for the Friday immersion tragedy. Shouting slogans against the officials of AOD Digboi, Mantush Dey, the former vice-president of Digboi Town Committee, alleged that AOD administration miserably failed to regulate and provide proper provisions during immersion time on Friday evening, leading to the death of a youth, Sanjay Baidyo of Digboi Kalibari area.

Meanwhile, hundreds of agitators demanded adequate compensation for the family of the deceased and employment to one of the members of the grief-stricken family. The members of various puja committees in Digboi present during the agitation also resolved to continue immersion in the adjacent old pond from next year, rejecting the new one erected couple of years back by the AOD authority to promote its industrial interest.

The security forces were deployed after the magistrate failed to pacify the crowd. AOD officials, when contacted, expressed regret at the loss of a life during immersion and said, “We had made all the required provisions for the service of the devotees and general people and deployed sufficient emergency resources.”

A local youth died on Friday evening while two drowned and were later rescued during the immersion of Goddess Durga idol here at the new immersion point. Fire service employees of the corporation deployed during the immersion were also injured and had to run for their lives when a mob resorted to violence.

The Superintendent of Police of Tinsukia said the loss of life in the accident was deeply regretted. He added, “Let the law take its own course, and blocking the national highway or resorting to violence will bring no resolution at all.” The corpse of the deceased was yet to be cremated until the filing of the report.