“Mining should be strictly monitored to prevent river pollution”
GUWAHATI: The All Dimasa Students Union, Dima Hasao district, has accepted the judgment of the Supreme Court to allow mining operations to go on in Meghalaya but warned that mining activity should be in accordance with the law and strictly monitored by the state and central government.
The students union was the first to file an application before the National Green Tribunal against rat-hole mining in Jaintia Hills back in 2014, an activity which the union claimed was polluting the Kopili river in the Umrangso area of Assam. The tribunal had subsequently enforced the ban on coal mining in the state.
“We respect the Supreme Court’s verdict but would like to state that the government, the forest and environment department and all concerned authorities have to now monitor that coal mining is carried out in accordance with the mining acts and laws, as the apex court has mentioned in its judgment,” Uttam Langthasa, the president of the All Dimasa Students’ Union, Dima Hasao district committee, told The Shillong Times from Haflong on Wednesday.
The apex court has allowed mining on the privately and community owned land under the relevant statutory framework of the Mines and Mineral Development and Regulation (MMDR) Act, 1957.
The incumbent state government has for the first time since the imposition of the mining ban by the NGT in 2014, preferred two civil appeals before the Supreme Court.
“The mining should be scientific and proper so that rivers are not polluted. This is something which has to be strictly enforced as rivers have become very acidic. Besides, we are against illegal rat-hole mining as the activity is dangerous with many miners having lost their lives over the years,” Langthasa said.
He recalled that prior to the NGT ban in 2014, the Kopili river became highly polluted due to rat-hole mining in neighbouring Jaintia Hills, affecting fish and plants in the river.
“But post NGT ban, there has been considerable improvement in the quality of the river, according to experts who had tested the water quality. So, we would urge the authorities to ensure that the activity is strictly regulated and monitored in the interest of human life and environment,” Langthasa said.