By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, April 9: In a significant development that may stall the proposed establishment of a controversial coke plant in East Jaintia Hills, Dolloi of Jowai Elaka, Puramon Kynjing, has assured the withdrawal of the No Objection Certificate (NOC) granted for the unit within Wapungskur village.
He has also reportedly instructed the headman of neighbouring Mookhep village to rescind the NOC issued to the company, OM OM Coke.
This assurance came during a meeting in Jowai on Wednesday, where representatives of the Wapungskur Dorbar Shnong presented their objections to the project.
“We met the Dolloi today and received a favourable response. He promised to send a directive to the headman of Mookhep to immediately cancel the NOC he had issued for the coke plant project,” Wapungskur headman, Postling Dkhar, said following the meeting.
He added that the Dolloi also assured them of formally notifying the concerned government departments in the coming days to confirm the cancellation of the NOC issued by his office.
Dkhar further stated that the Dorbar Shnong had raised the issue with the Deputy Commissioner of East Jaintia Hills on April 4.
The DC promptly responded by instructing various departments to put the proposal on hold until the matter is resolved.
Despite these administrative steps, Dkhar reiterated the community’s firm opposition to the proposed coke plant.
He also revealed that the Chief Forest Officer (CFO) of the Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) has pledged to annul any NOC or clearance earlier issued by the council, citing OM OM Coke’s failure to submit the required documents.
Meanwhile, the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board (MSPCB), which had issued the Consent to Establish (CoE) on March 7 to OM OM Coke for a LAM coke manufacturing unit with a single chimney at Thlakuru in Mookhep, is now facing growing pressure to reconsider its decision.
The Rs 4.5 crore project had received approval valid until February 28, 2026, unless revoked or suspended earlier.