Shillong: Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Thursday said the families of the five persons who died in the Lapalang well asphyxiation incident were provided ex-gratia assistance, clarifying that the payment came from the Chief Minister’s Special Grant (CMSG) and not the State Disaster Management Fund (SDMF).
The clarification came after VPP chief and Nongkrem MLA Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit raised the matter in the Assembly and questioned the government’s alleged failure to provide ex-gratia assistance to the victims’ families.
Basaiawmoit said the issue was not simply about compensation but about ensuring that families affected by such tragedies were treated fairly.
Pointing out that five people had lost their lives in the workplace accident, he said the deaths could have deprived their families of their primary breadwinners and sources of livelihood.
He questioned the government on the basis for allegedly withholding ex-gratia assistance and referred to payments made in other cases, including the January 14, 2026, coal mine blast at illegal rat-hole mines in the Mawsriatangsko area of East Jaintia Hills and pipeline-related incidents near a temple in West Bengal on August 17.
Basaiawmoit sought clarity on the government’s policy for providing ex-gratia assistance and asked whether there was a uniform set of guidelines governing such payments.
He also appealed to the government to reconsider the Lapalang case and ensure that the families of the deceased were not left without assistance because the incident was classified differently from other disasters or accidents.
Replying to the issue, Sangma said the assertion that no ex-gratia assistance had been provided was incorrect.
He said the government had sanctioned assistance to the five families under the CMSG, which operates separately from the SDMF.
Sangma explained that assistance under the SDMF is governed by the provisions of the disaster management framework and is applicable to specific categories of natural disasters covered by the State Disaster Response Fund.
As the Lapalang incident was an accident, rather than a disaster falling within the applicable SDMF categories, the government could not provide assistance from that fund, he said.
The Chief Minister said the CMSG provided the government with another avenue to assist families in circumstances that do not fall under the SDMF.
Unlike the SDMF, however, the CMSG does not have fixed guidelines prescribing a particular amount of ex-gratia assistance. The amount and decision to provide assistance are determined based on the circumstances of each case, he said.
Sangma said the government had to exercise caution in extending such assistance, as providing ex-gratia in one accident could create a precedent and lead to demands for similar assistance in every accident.
“We have to balance the circumstances,” he said, adding that CMSG assistance could not be extended in every accident.
In the Lapalang case, the government considered both the circumstances surrounding the incident and the situation of the affected families before deciding to extend financial assistance, Sangma said.
He added that the assistance was provided without any public announcement.
“The government’s actions are more important than making news out of the assistance,” Sangma said, explaining that the families were quietly given the assistance.
He acknowledged that the decision not to publicise the payment may have been why the assistance was not known to the media or legislators who subsequently raised the issue.
Sangma assured the House that the government would continue to extend support wherever possible, while stressing that CMSG assistance would have to be considered on a case-by-case basis to prevent the creation of precedents for every accident in the state.
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