Digboi: Anger and grief erupted in Assam’s Digboi on Wednesday as hundreds of residents and student organizations blocked the Digboi–Pengaree NEC Road near Bapapung, staging a dramatic protest following the death of 19-year-old Daulat Phukan of Pengaree.
Phukan, a trainee at the Fire and Safety Institute, was returning to classes with a friend on the evening of September 14 when his scooty rammed into an exposed under-construction culvert close to the institute at Bapapung, under the jurisdiction of Digboi police station.
Despite undergoing emergency brain surgery, he succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital in Dibrugarh on Wednesday morning.
Enraged protesters soon placed Phukan’s body on the NEC road, paralyzing traffic and leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded for hours as they demanded accountability and justice.
“When normal approaches fail to yield justice, such protests are inevitable,” said a representative of the All Assam Students’ Union (AASU).
The protest drew members from AASU, the All Assam Gorkha Students’ Union (AAGSU), the Assam Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chhatra Parishad (AJYCP), and the All Assam Moran Students’ Union (AAMSU).
They demanded the arrest of contractor Matlab Uddin Ahmed of Guwahati-based Purvanchal Building, which is executing the Assam Mala project, adequate compensation for Phukan’s family, and the blacklisting of the company by the BJP-led state government under Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
“The PWD, as the executing agency, has completely failed to tighten the noose on the contractor and ensure public safety,” alleged AJYCP activists.
Protesters, joined by various women’s organizations, continued to raise anti-contractor slogans until late evening.
The September 12 death of Dibruraj Mahanta from Kakopather’s Selenguri village, after project machinery ran over him at Philobari, also reignited public anger
In that case, contractor Bhartia Infra Projects Limited (BIPL) reportedly paid Rs 1 lakh as interim relief, though other demands remain unmet.
Locals noted that authorities had not extended any such support to Phukan’s family, which heightened resentment.
The blockade of the Digboi–Pengaree NEC Road at Bapapung underscores the growing erosion of public trust in governance, as repeated accidents, alleged contractor negligence, and official inaction push citizens toward desperate forms of protest.