TURA, May 27: The order of the High Court of Meghalaya questioning the export of coal into Bangladesh may have opened a “Pandora’s Box” highlighting how some mean-minded businessmen in conduit with some politicians have been not only bypassing the system set up by the National Green Tribunal but also robbing the state of crores of rupees in taxes.
To think that the state government has actually gone ahead and raised the prices of alcohol to earn more revenue while allowing for the robbing of revenue for the state is an irony that confounds many. The answers however are not forthcoming as of now.
A little understanding of the process brought out many things. It also showed how a brilliant idea thought of by some clever businessmen of the use of e-way bills to export coals into neighbouring Bangladesh would help bypass all regulations by the Supreme Court and to an extent the NGT and its various committees.
The modus operandi is simple: Coal is shown to have come through from Assam before it is exported through the use of e-way bills. With the coal being shown to have come from Assam, the question of NGT guideline violation goes out of the window as the restriction of coal mining and transport is only for Meghalaya. The ingenious thing that has been taking place is the coal still comes from the state but is literally being “whitewashed” by some politicians and colluding businessmen in conduit with willing or unwilling officials from the Directorate of Mineral Resources and the Transport department.
What is even more infuriating is the fact that despite the coal being from the state, taxes in the form of GST is being paid to Assam, which has literally no role in the entire process other than the use of the name of the state.
For Gasuapara, the permission for the movement of coal through the state from Assam was provided to one Jai Maa Coal Pvt Ltd. The enterprise allegedly belongs to one Balwan Soni (alias Bhama). Bhama has been in the news recently for being arrested by Assam police over accusations of tax fraud. He was recently released.
While the export of coal through Bangladesh was stopped in the interim of his incarceration, upon his release, orders were once again renewed to allow his firm to export stranded coal into Bangladesh.
The objective was to transport coal from the Nongalbibra region into the Gasuapara Land Customs Station (LCS) from where the same was dumped into the various depots of Gasuapara. E-way bills would then be created for those exporters who were willing to pay the ‘fees’ demanded per truck to complete their ‘Letter of Credit’ (LC) commitment. (Contd on P-4)
Businessmen-politician nexus…
(Contd from P-1) The ‘fees’ demanded per truck, as per sources went north of Rs 50,000 per truck. From this amount a GST fee of close to Rs 2,000 for export was charged for each transaction. As to where the rest of the money taken for the export has gone, is anyone’s guess?
For Gasuapara, the entry point of the coal trucks is in Dainadubi in North Garo Hills (NGH). The village is less than a kilometer from the Assam border with nearby Dudhnoi being shown as the point of origin of the coal.
A simple check of the available records, including CCTV footage available will reveal no trucks carrying coal have entered the state from Assam. However, if one is to understand, the entry of the trucks may have been marked through the use of the official machinery of the state. Whether the same is being done in connivance or under duress is a question that only those behind the scenes can answer.
A DMR official from Dainadubi in fact even confirmed that no coal truck has entered through their check gate – a fact that can be corroborated through evidence and checks – though that may only take place if the government allows it. With many in the ruling dispensation being actively involved in all aspects of the illegal trade, an investigation, for now, is certainly wishful thinking.
What is even more interesting is that the use of e-way bills may not be unique to only Gasuapara. Sources have confirmed that the same is being used in other export ports through South West Khasi Hills as well in Jaintia Hills, though the enterprises used are completely different and run by different businessmen – albeit with complete connivance with some politicians of the state.
An idea of how many crores of revenue is actually being lost would not be difficult to calculate. A simple count of how many letters of credit has been completed using e-way bills from Assam would reveal the figure which will be in the range of crores.
“Who can go against orders? If you dare, you are transferred or even worse. There is no easy way out for us,” said a highly-placed source from the DMR, while praying for anonymity.
