Assam orders probe into labourers' death in Meghalaya

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Wednesday has asked additional chief secretary S. Meora to probe the death of 14 labourers from the state in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district.

The labourers, who were working on a construction project in the remote Saipung area in Meghalaya, were found dead in their camp on Monday.

All labourers hail from Golakganj area in Assam's Dhubri district.

Locals claimed it was a case of food poisoning and said the labourers had collected some wild fruits from the nearby forest and ate it in the evening meal on Sunday.

Meghalaya Police carried out post-mortem examinations of the labourers and the reports on what caused the deaths are awaited.

Meanwhile, the bodies of the labourers have arrived in their villages on Wednesday but their family members have demanded a second autopsy as they refused to believe it to be a case of food poisoning.

"The family members have alleged some foul play and they insisted for a post-mortem to be carried out here. We are looking into the matter. We would be able to get more details after receiving the post-mortem report," said Dhubri Superintendent of Police (SP) Mridulananda Sarma.