From Our Correspondent
JOWAI: Unauthorised checking of labour licenses by certain NGOs in Jaintia hills have badly affected coal mine owners, who have claimed that such checking has led to shortage of manpower in their respective mines.
Coal traders allege that checking of labour license and other documents of inter-state migrant labourers has not only affected the coal trade but has also become a harassment for both coal traders and migrant labourers.
“No mines owner can operate his coal mine without the help of non-tribal people,” B Sutnga, a mine owner, said, adding, “mines owners and mines operator are now suffering due to shortage of workers.”
Another coal trader stated that regular checking and subsequent ‘deportation’ of inter-state migrant labourers in and from Jaintia hills has affected their business in a big way. He added that the issue could take a serious turn if people from Meghalaya living, working and studying outside the State are also targeted in the same way.
Coal traders also alleged that some NGOs in Jaintia hills are conducting checking drives for personal interests. The traders have alleged that members of NGOs stay awake the entire night at Ladrymbai area waiting for night buses to arrive so that they can apprehend any non-tribal who disembarks there.
The traders allege that the NGO members first demand identity proofs from the non-tribals and if anyone is able to produce such document, the NGOs then ask them to produce their labour license.
“Interestingly the Department of Labour has never issued any labour license to any individual. The concerned department has only issued labour license to the employer including contractors, mine owners or any firm, company or individual who employs inter-state migrant labourers,” the mine owners claim.
Police also find it difficult to deal with the issue. “We know that we cannot take any action against them as they are genuine Indians but we have to push them back due to pressure from the NGOs who bring them to the police stations,” a police officer said on condition of anonymity.
A couple of weeks ago, a Jaintia Hills based NGO apprehended 155 inter-state migrant labourers. The leader of the NGO had claimed that all of of them were suspected Bangladeshi nationals. As a regular practice, all the labourers were handed over to personnel of the Infiltration Cell of the Police Department at Byndihati check gate.
However, the police, after verifying all their documents did not detect even one Bangladeshi. “We interrogated and verified their documents and found that they were all Indian national but we had to push them back due to pressure from members of the particular NGO,” the police officer added.
There are allegations that some NGO leaders impose fine on those labourers who fail to produce labour licenses.
The coal miners’ association recently held a meeting to iron out the differences. Various NGO leaders were invited to the meeting but only a few of them turned up.
“The government should develop a system so that there is no problem for inter-state migrant labourers to enter the district for smooth operation of coal mines and other businesses in Jaintia hills,” the coal owners said.