Itanagar, Nov 12: The Arunachal Pradesh government has suspended four district officials and recommended disciplinary action against East Kameng Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Nigam after a fact-finding committee uncovered large-scale irregularities in land compensation for the Lada–Sarli stretch of the Frontier Highway project.

According to an official statement, the probe found that compensation had been issued for non-existent assets and that several wrongful and fraudulent assessments were made during the land acquisition process for packages I to V of the 125.55-km Lada–Sarli segment.

Those suspended include Divisional Forest Officer Abhinav Kumar, District Agriculture Officer Miram Perme, District Horticulture Officer C. K. Tayum, and District Land Revenue & Settlement Officer Takam Kechak. The state government has also written to the Ministry of Home Affairs seeking the suspension of the deputy commissioner, who chaired the Ground Verification Board that approved the disputed award.

The fact-finding committee, constituted on August 13 and headed by the Commissioner (Transport) with senior officials from multiple departments, was formed following complaints from affected landowners. The complainants alleged the absence of proper ground surveys, exclusion of genuine claimants, and inflated payments to fictitious beneficiaries.

In its interim report submitted on November 4, the committee confirmed instances of fraudulent assessments and disproportionate compensation disbursals. It has been directed to submit its final report by November 30.

Public discontent has grown over the issue, with civil society groups and local organisations demanding the recovery of misused funds and a transparent investigation. The Land Management Department, in an order signed by Secretary A. K. Singh, stated that the suspensions were necessary due to the seriousness of the committee’s findings.

The Frontier Highway, a crucial component of India’s strategic border infrastructure initiative, has faced repeated delays owing to land compensation disputes across several affected districts.