By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, July 13: The High Court of Meghalaya on Thursday observed that Meghalaya Police can obtain the assistance and cooperation of the Assam Police to launch a combined operation not only to arrest the illegality of coal mining but also to ensure that the exploitation of the small miners in the state cannot be continued by operators functioning from elsewhere.
The Court said the miners operating in the state are small-time operators and the entire operations are controlled by kingpins who may not be in the state and it is for such reason that this court had indicated earlier that an investigation into the illegal activities may be directed to be conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
“However, if the state is serious in dealing with the issue, it is possible for the State police to obtain the assistance and cooperation of the Assam Police to launch a combined operation to arrest the illegality,” the full bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justices Hamarsan Singh Thangkhiew and Wanlura Diengdoh said.
The court said the state will obtain such information as may be available with the individual petitioners in the connected matters, including names and details of alleged or perceived kingpins and seek the assistance of the Assam Police to bring the matter to a logical conclusion.
The court also directed that both Meghalaya and Assam Police will ensure that the petitioners in the connected matters or others come to no harm.
“It appears from newspaper reports and submission made by the Advocate-General on behalf of the state that effective steps have now been initiated to demolish the illegally-established or the illegally-operating coke plants, adding it appears appropriate for the state to be afforded some time to proceed in accordance with law in such regard.
“It was the state’s further submission that effective steps are now being taken for arresting the transportation of the illegally-mined coal and ensuring that false documentation cannot be created for illegally-mined coal in the state to be passed off as coal originating elsewhere,” the court said.
“Repeated orders have been passed in matters pertaining to illegal mining of coal, the transportation of such illegally-mined coal and the operation of illegal coke plants in the state for the last 15 months or so. However, it appears that the state may have woken up from its slumber and may have being goaded into action by the recent orders,” the court said.
The court also said that the state should encourage cooperative bodies to be formed by small miners so that collectively they can afford to obtain the requisite permission for scientific mining and, thereupon, the state can guide such cooperative bodies to ensure that scientific mining is conducted by them by adhering to all statutory and environmental concerns and parameters.
The court hoped that in adopting such an approach, the state will both ensure that the revenue due to it on account of mining is not lost and that the livelihoods lost by those engaged in coal-mining is restored.
As of now, since it appears that the state is dealing with the illegal operation of coke plants in right earnest or so it is submitted, no immediate order was passed and all matters, including the present one pertaining to illegal mining of coal, the transportation of such illegally-mined coal and the operation of illegal coke plants will stand over for three weeks.
The state was asked to file a status report on all three aspects through the Secretary in the Mining Department within a fortnight.
The case will be heard next on August 8.