NF Railway links snapped after 11 railway men massacred

Guwahati, Oct 6 (UNI) Railway operation between Lumding and Badarpur of the North Eastern Frontier Railway has come to a grinding halt as 11 railway men were massacred by Dimasa militants today near Lumding.

According to official sources, the incident occurred at around 1000 hours this morning when the anti-talk faction of the Dima Halom Daogah (DHD), the Black Widow, attacked a 20-member railway team proceeding in four vehicles beyond Mandaksa railway station to inspect some engineering works.

Amongst the 11 dead, there were six RPF jawans, two N F Railway engineering staff and the rest were engineering staff members of contractors working on the gauge conservation work.

The ambush was reportedly carried out in a remote jungle near Hatikhuli, about 12 km from Lumding railway junction.

The first two vehicles managed to slip away but the militants, from a vintage hill top position, ambushed the remaining two, killing all the occupants.

According to official report, there was an encounter and the militants took away all the weapons of the railway security men.

They killed nine on the spot while two others died later.

Reports from Lumding and Badarpur stated that tension prevailed in the two towns and adjoining areas following the attack.

This was the biggest attack on N F Railway personnel in the past few years. Gauge conversion work along Lumding to Badarpur had resumed just a few days back after work was halted by the contractors, demanding adequate security from repeated militant threats.

The anti-talk Black Widow had been operating in the area for some time and specifically targeting the railway installations.

Meanwhile, DHD chairman Dileep Nunisa has condemned the incident, saying that anti-talk and anti-peace forces had been trying to derail the whole process by creating violence in the area.

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