Guwahati: Responding to an appeal from Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the banned United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) freed ONGC employee Ritul Saikia, who they had kidnapped over a month ago.Saikia, abducted on April 21, was released this morning by ULFA (I) militants near the Myanmar border in Longwa village of Mon district, Nagaland, a top official at Assam Police headquarters told PTI. He reached home late in the evening.Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and governor Jagdish Mukhi welcomed the release. The chief minister had paid a visit to his home on May 18 and had made an appeal to the insurgent group to set him free.Saikia was released around 7 am on the Myanmar side, and walked approximately 40 minutes to cross to the Indian side, the additional DGP-ranked official said.Saikia was taken to Mon police station by the Army and Nagaland Police. An Assam Police team was also there to complete formalities and take him back home.The liberated ONGC staffer looked hale and hearty. A medical check-up will be done before dropping him at his home in Titabar of Jorhat district in Assam, the senior police official said.Following the release, the Assam chief minister said he hopes that an era of peace and development is firmly established in the state with the cooperation of all.“Heartily welcome release of Ritul Saikia, ONGC employee abducted by ULFA, early today! Grateful to Honble UHM @AmitShah (Union Home Minister Amit Shah) for constant guidance. Hope an era of peace & development is firmly established in state with cooperation of one and all. Pray to Almighty for His Blessings,” Sarma tweeted.Governor Jagdish Mukhi said that Saikia’s release by ULFA(I) is a “welcome step” towards peace and development of the state.“Recently, the ULFA(I) has announced a unilateral ceasefire for three months. However, the announcement of ceasefire without stated ground rules may not yield the desired results. Nonetheless, my government considers the announcement of ceasefire a step in the positive direction,” he said while addressing the assembly.The process to devise the ground rules should now be set in motion, the governor said.Three ONGC employees were kidnapped by ULFA(I) militants on April 21, from the Lakwa oilfield in Sivasagar district along the Assam- Nagaland border. Two of them, Mohini Mohan Gogoi and Alakesh Saikia, were rescued on April 24 after an encounter near the India- Myanmar border in Mon district while the search for Saikia was on.Sarma visited Saikia’s home on May 18 and assured his wife and parents about the government’s effort to bring him back. Only hours later, ULFA(I) chief Paresh Baruah confirmed the custody of the kidnapped person.On May 20, Sarma appealed to Baruah to release the kidnapped ONGC employee in a press conference, and said that the Assam government will pressure the oil companies to invest more for the progress of the state.While the official press conference was underway, Baruah made phone calls to local TV channels and announced to release Saikia in less than seven days.The chief minister, on the other side, welcomed the three-month unilateral ceasefire declared by the ULFA(I) and urged Baruah to come to the discussion table.In the first week of April, two employees of the Quippo Oil and Gas Infrastructure were released by ULFA(I) after three-and-half months of their kidnap on December 21 last year.The two were kidnapped from Kumchaikha hydrocarbon drilling site, in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh with a demand for a ransom of Rs 20 crore.(PTI)