SHILLONG: Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has said the state government is putting in place systems for sustainable mining so that the present and future generations can reap the benefits of the important resources.
Delivering the Independence Day speech on Thursday in the city, Sangma said the July 3 Supreme Court order will certainly have a positive impact on the economy of the state and will lead to revival of the coal mining areas.
The state has about 576 million tonnes of coal deposits and about 9,300 million tonnes of limestone deposits. The value of all mineral resources of the state is about 180 billion US dollars, he said.
Sangma said the verdict of the court lifting the 2014 ban on coal mining is a big victory for the people of the state. According to Sangma, the court upheld the government’s contention that the indigenous people of Meghalaya have rights over land and extracted minerals.
“Perhaps for the first time anywhere in the country, the government argued for protection of tribal rights, the unique culture and identity of the people before the highest court of the land”, he said.
Sangma said the government walked the talk on the issue and he felt a great sense of satisfaction.
He said the order of the court is historic and its implications extend beyond the realm of coal mining.
“Once tribal identity has been acknowledged by the Supreme Court, our customs, practices and traditions will remain protected”, he said.
QR-coding of challans
The chief minister said the government has just launched a system for QR-coding and app-based scanning of challans released by the forest and mineral resources departments.
The system will prevent duplication of challans and improve the royalty collection on minerals.
“We have also started the process for setting up integrated check gates at a few locations in the state and end-to-end computerisation of the revenue collection on minerals. Similar initiatives have led to substantial increases in revenue collection in mineral-rich states like Chhattisgarh and Orissa”, he said.
The chief minister hoped that QR-coding of challans and setting up of the integrated check gates will improve revenue collection considerably.
He said this is the first time in the history of the state that such systematic efforts are being made to improve the state’s own revenue collection.
