By H H Mohrmen
When the National Green Tribunal (NGT) first ordered the ban on mining and transportation of coal from Meghalaya in April 2014 all hell broke loose and the doomsayers had a field day. They have predicted loss of jobs, social unrest and even starvation in the area if the NGT continues with the ban. But three years down the line with the benefit of the hindsight, we can only thank goodness that the doomsayers were wrong.
Of course it is not that the people did not have to undergo hardships because of the instantaneous ban which did not give them the chance to explore alternative livelihood opportunities, but thanks to the common human virtue called resilience the poor people in the area are beginning to write new chapters of their stories.
This column had earlier written about the farmers of Samasi village and its adjoining areas who had started farming once again and some of the youths who were trained in apiculture have succeeded in producing and marketing honey. Areas like Jalaphet and those adjoining to it have started farming once again.
In places where (during the heydays of mining) people would not have time to do anything at all, now they have started kitchen garden and have started appreciating the chirping of the birds and caw of the crows. Elsewhere in the newly created district people have started robust agriculture farming and there are those who are now engaged in livestock rearing too in a big way.
The newly appointed DC of East Jaintia Hills district who himself is the founding member and is still in the forefront of Jaintia Tourism and Environment Society (JTES) an organisation which works for promoting tourism in both districts of Jaintia hills district has done a commendable job since he assumed office about a year or so ago. Through the convergence mode between District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), District Basin Development Agency (DBDU), MLA schemes and other government departments and agencies MS Lhuid first started promoting Chamcham village as a potential spot to attract tourists. The village which is situated on the banks of the river Myntdu is blessed with the majestic Rynji falls which about 70 feet high and Sahksaw which has a beauty of its own.
Recently other spots like Moopoon water fall and the Moopoon stone bridge was introduced to the tourist map of Meghalaya and both the spots have huge potential to attract tourist. It was the former Deputy Commissioner of Jaintia hills F R Kharkongor who while addressing a gathering once said, not only ‘mooiong’ (coal) can give you income ‘moo-tourism’ (tourism) can also provide you income which is also sustainable.
There is also information that people from Shnongrim village where there is a huge potential for cave tourism have approached the DBDU to explore the possibility of projecting the area for developing it as a tourist spot. Despite criticism that the water in the area is still polluted, there is no denying the truth that in some areas the quality of the water in the rivers has started to improve and it has only been three years since the ban. The improved water quality coupled with the beauty of the place will be able to attract tourists to the areas.
Yet there are people who still think that coal mining is the only solution and the only livelihood activities for those in the coal mine areas. Coal barons especially those who are from outside the district are of the opinion that only coal mining can save the people in the area and they also foresee no future for the district except through coal mining. They cannot accept the truth that coal is a finite resource which will one day exhaust and therefore there is the need to look for other sustainable livelihoods.
It is the youth which are more open and are ready to accept the changes. On September 25 last while observing the anniversary of the unfortunate firing on the crowd that protested against the NGT ban at Mukhep, East Jaintia hills, the pressure group Hynniewtrep Achik National Movement (HANM) East Jaintia Hills unit organised a special program to mark the occasion. Because September 24, the anniversary of the firing falls on Sunday, HANM instead organised a one day awareness program on job opportunities in the area post NGT ban on the September 25. The meeting in which officials from the district administration East Jaintia hills and the police department also addressed the gathering dealt at length on the issue and the speakers encouraged the youths in the meeting to explore other alternative livelihood opportunities. The speakers also made the youths realise the truth that even if coal mining in the area is permitted again, the fact remains that it is a finite resource and it will one day exhaust.
If the people had learned any lesson at all from the coal mining ban, it is that they are prepared now. They are not depending on one activity alone and this will continue because the truth is in a state like Meghalaya where more than seventy percent of the population still lives in the rural areas and depend on agriculture, farming is the only potential job provider in the state. The way forward for the state is to focus on improving agriculture and create avenues for job creation in the sector.
But instead of looking forward, the coal mine owners in collaboration with the politicians are hell-bent in their efforts to pressure the Government to find ways to allow mining to continue as usual in the area. The coal lobbyist are even switching sides from left to right hoping that these parties will be able to pressure the NGT to allow mining as usual without any regulation whatsoever. With the election to the State Assembly approaching closer every day, the parties too are in competition to woo the mining lobby to their side. But the reality is that it is the farmers who are going to decide the winners of the election.
The question is why none of the parties realize what happened at the grassroots level? Why is nobody caring to even look at the efforts that the people who had once lost their jobs have put in to support themselves? They have survived the ordeal by going back to farming once again and they are not complaining about it anymore. If one visits the village and talks to the people who are in the lower strata of society, the narrative has changed and they are back to being farmers once again. These are the stories that we need to pay heed to too because they are genuine and depict the real picture of what is really happening at the lower strata of the society.
The political parties and the Government should look at these stories of resilience in almost every nook and corner of the district and encourage and support them in their endeavour because it not only provides them livelihoods but the activities are also sustainable. The political parties should not only listen to the lobbyists who are of course rich and can easily explore other job opportunities anywhere, but instead listen to the poor who have given their sweat and tears to eke out a living after the ban.
The political parties should also remember that the lobbyists have predicted chaos and starvation in the area post NGT ban and they were wrong. What instead we see is the quality of water in some streams and rivers getting back to normal again and anglers starting to fish once again in these rivers, even without any Government intervention, to reclaim the rivers. And the most important lesson is that the people have succeeded in their efforts and have risen once again from the depths of their crisis.