Five Officials Suspended Over Land Compensation Irregularities on Lada-Sarli Frontier Highway in Arunachal

The Arunachal Pradesh government has taken strict administrative action following the discovery of large-scale irregularities in the land compensation process for the Lada-Sarli Frontier Highway project under East Kameng district. A Fact-Finding Committee (FFC) constituted by the state found serious lapses in the acquisition and compensation procedures, prompting the government to suspend four senior district officials and recommend the suspension of the East Kameng Deputy Commissioner, Himanshu Nigam, IAS, who headed the Ground Verification Board responsible for overseeing the land acquisition process.

The land acquisition for the 125.55 km stretch of the Lada-Sarli Frontier Highway was initiated under the RFCTLARR Act, 2013. A Ground Verification Board, led by Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Nigam, and comprising officials from the Forest, Agriculture, and Land Revenue departments, was tasked with ensuring proper assessment and compensation for affected landowners. Following the approval of compensation awards in April 2025, the government received numerous complaints from landowners alleging multiple irregularities. These included failure to conduct proper ground surveys, discrepancies in compensation amounts, favoritism in disbursing payments, and instances where non-existent assets were included and compensated, while genuine landowners were reportedly excluded from the process.

In response to these complaints, the Arunachal Pradesh government constituted a Fact-Finding Committee on August 13, 2025. The FFC was chaired by the Commissioner (Transport) and included representatives from various departments including PWD, Forest, Horticulture, Fisheries, and Land Management. The committee was tasked with conducting an impartial investigation into the complaints and examining whether proper procedures had been followed during land acquisition and compensation.

The FFC submitted its interim report on November 4, 2025, which confirmed significant irregularities in the process. The report highlighted fraudulent and wrongful assessments, the inclusion of non-existent properties in the compensation lists, and serious errors and omissions by the district team responsible for field surveys. The committee emphasized that these irregularities were not just minor lapses but indicated deliberate mismanagement and potential misuse of authority by officials involved in the process.

Based on the findings of the FFC, the Arunachal Pradesh government immediately ordered the suspension of four senior officials directly associated with the project: Abhinav Kumar, IFS, Divisional Forest Officer, Seppa; Miram Perme, District Agriculture Officer, Seppa; C.K. Tayum, District Horticulture Officer; and Takam Kechak, District Land Revenue & Settlement Officer. Furthermore, the government recommended to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) the suspension of Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Nigam, IAS, who chaired the verification board overseeing the land acquisition process.

The Department of Land Management, through a press release signed by A.K. Singh, IAS, Secretary of the department, also clarified that the FFC has been granted time until November 30, 2025, to submit its final report. The government assured the public that strict action would follow based on the committee’s final findings. The statement reiterated the administration’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and the fair implementation of public projects, emphasizing that any deviations or misconduct in critical development projects would be addressed promptly and decisively.

Overall, the suspension of officials reflects the state government’s zero-tolerance policy toward administrative irregularities and its efforts to maintain integrity in infrastructure projects, especially those affecting landowners and local communities. The final report of the FFC is expected to guide further actions and ensure accountability at all levels of project execution.