Green tribunal directive on mining plan
SHILLONG: The withdrawal of the ban on coal mining by NGT will depend on the submission of a detailed mining plan by the NGT-constituted committee headed by additional Chief Secretary K S Kropha.
With the NGT is yet to get a mining plan following the ban on coal mining, tough task is ahead for the Kropha -led committee to complete its job of preparing a detailed mining plan.
The NGT while asking the Committee to submit the report at the earliest said that it expects that the State would provide all manpower and facilities to the Committee to ensure that it completes its work at the earliest in order to facilitate the Tribunal “to consider the individual requests to carry on mining activity”.
Earlier, the State Mining and Geology department had claimed that it had submitted to the Centre details regarding the ways and means of mining of coal which is almost similar to the mining plan as well as a different health plan.
However, the NGT directive to the Kropha Committee during October 7 hearing to complete the mining plan indicates that the plans related to mining and health submitted by the mining and geology department remains incomplete.
” We direct the Committee to submit a complete and comprehensive report as to the methodology along with the mining plan which should be adopted for the purpose of carrying out mining activities in a scientific, regulated, permissible manner in the State of Meghalaya”, the order said.
According to NGT, the report on mining plan shall provide the measures that should be taken for ensuring pollution free mining, duly protecting humans in general and labourers’ life and health in particular, and to keep the flora and fauna intact in Meghalaya and to ensure that there is no further deterioration of water bodies including rivers and streams.
“This report shall also give measures which should be taken to ensure prevention, control and restoration of acidic water to normalcy with reference to pH, iron and sulphates levels, and to bring Suspended Particulate Matter( SPM) and Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter ( RSPM) ambient air within the permissible limits”, the NGT said.
The NGT further said that these steps are necessary to ensure that “people of Meghalaya should be able to drink water of their streams, rivers and water bodies and breathe clean air without fear of sickness and ill-health”.
According to NGT, it cannot be disputed that Meghalaya is one of the most green states of the country and has enviable environment and ecology. “It is the obligation of the State and every citizen to ensure that the environment, ecology and public health of the State is not permitted or subjected to further degradation and destruction”, the NGT order said.
The Committee for the purpose of submitting the report will have to carry out surveys or inspections, and can engage specialized agencies like central mine plan and design institute (CAMPDI) and national environmental engineering research institute (NEERI) to carry-out specific scientific surveys and submit its final report to the Tribunal. The Committee should also map the entire coal reserve of the State and superimpose the existing coal mines irrespective of their individual areas on map in order to identify the clusters and suggest measures needed for preparing appropriate environmental friendly mining plan, the NGT added.