SHILLONG: Chief Minister Mukul Sangma has said that the State Government was committed to regulating mining activities in the State.
“The State Government had approved the Meghalaya Mines and Minerals Policy, 2012 with the sole objective of facilitating systematic and scientific utilization of mineral resources keeping in mind the protection of environment, land, health and safety of people in and around the mining areas,” Sangma had said here on Wednesday.
According to the Chief Minister, the Government formulated the policy to ensure optimal utilization of available mineral resources, realization of vast mineral potential, generating revenue for socio-economic development, uplifting the economy of the State and enhancing employment opportunities.
He, however, said that the State Government was not able to implement the Mines and Mineral Policy since the provisions of the various Central mines acts passed by the Parliament were “coming in the way”.
“It is wrong to accuse the State Government of not being in favour of coming up with the mining plan as suggested by the NGT,” Sangma reiterated adding that the Government had initiated the process to formulate the mining policy way back in 2009.
The Chief Minister also rubbished the “conflict of interest” angle raised by many on grounds that several people in the Government including Ministers were into coal business and were opposed to any move to regulate coal mining activities.
According to the Chief Minister, time has come to shun traditional mining practices.
He also lauded the people of the State for being alert on issues affecting them.
“Personally, I am really happy to see that it was the voice raised by a section of citizens that led to the ban on coal mining in the State. The NGT has banned the mining of coal in the State due to two main reasons, environmental hazards and safety,” Sangma said.
The Chief Minister also said that the State Government is trying its best to address the environmental concerns and also to comply with the provisions of the various statutory laws.
“As it stands at present, there are many technicalities that the people of the State would need to overcome if they are applying for mining clearances as per the statutory law.
The first challenge is the provision in the Coal Mines Nationalization Act, 1973, implementation of which would mean that all coal mines in the country will be transferred to the Union Government,” the Chief Minister said.
While referring to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2015, the Chief Minister said that the Amendment Act has also made provisions for allocation of coal mines through e-auctions and a bidding process.
“It is for these reasons that we are moving the Government Resolution during the current Autumn Session to invoke upon the Union Government to exempt the application of such provisions in the scheduled areas of the State,” he said.
Stating that besides complying to the directive of the NGT to come up with the mining plan, Sangma said that side by side, the Government is also trying its best to remove the hurdle in the form of provisions of the various statutory acts.
