Digboi businessman missing for 17 days; kidnapping suspected

OUR CORRESPONDENT

DIGBOI: The unexplained disappearance of Class-I AOD contractor and business tycoon Putul Sarmah has entered its seventeenth day, casting a shadow not only over his family but also over hundreds of workers and multiple ongoing projects under the Indian Oil Corporation’s Assam Oil Division (IOC-AOD).

Sarmah, a resident of Borbil No. 1 in Digboi, went missing on August 14 and has remained untraceable ever since. Despite sustained search operations, police have yet to make any breakthrough in the case. A case has been registered at Digboi police station (Case No. 130/25 U/S 140(3) BNS), but the investigation has so far failed to provide any concrete clue about his whereabouts.

Family members fear that the incident may be linked to kidnapping by unknown miscreants. Adding to the speculation, rumours have circulated that Sarmah was spotted at a hotel in Ledu, some 35 kilometres from Digboi, though officials have not confirmed the claim.

The disappearance has also triggered deep uncertainty in the business sector. Known as one of the most influential contractors in the region, Sarmah was managing multiple refinery projects under IOC-AOD, including transportation, labour supply, and civil construction works at various vital establishments.

Reports suggest he was directly overseeing more than two hundred works across different plants of the Digboi Refinery.

Ironically, several tenders he had applied for have been qualified in his absence, raising questions about the execution of major refinery-linked projects.

The situation has been particularly distressing for workers dependent on his contracts. With two months of salaries pending, hundreds of labourers and contractual staff are facing mounting anxiety, especially with the Durga Puja festivities drawing near. Questions are now being raised over who will ensure the payment of dues and keep the projects running in the absence of the contractor.

Meanwhile, Sarmah’s family and well-wishers have intensified their efforts by distributing missing posters and making appeals on social media platforms to generate leads. Police officials have assured that search operations were underway, but the lack of progress has left both the family and the wider community in growing despair.

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