The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of the reported deaths of four workers at a metal processing factory in southern Assam’s Cachar district on July 26.

Five people, including the owner of the factory, were arrested in connection with the explosion, which left two other workers severely injured. The factory is in a shared industrial compound at Pangram in the district’s Udharbond area.

“Reportedly, molten metal spilled over the workers after the explosion. The families of the victims and locals alleged that such incidents have happened at the factory earlier also,” the NHRC said on Wednesday (July 29, 2026).

The rights panel observed that the contents of the media reports, if true, raise serious issues of human rights violations. Accordingly, it issued notices to the Assam Chief Secretary and the Cachar Superintendent of Police, seeking a detailed report on the matter within two weeks.

The report is expected to include the health status of the injured, as well as disbursement of compensation to the next of kin of the deceased and to the injured workers.

More than 100 workers were reported to have been present at the factory when the explosion happened. Officials confirmed the identity of the four deceased as Kiran Munda, Appu Baraik, Shyamal Gour, and Sagar Nath.

Later, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced an ex-gratia payment of ₹5 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to the next of kin of each of the four deceased workers.