By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, May 26: The ruling NPP, which has been at the receiving end of the National Green Tribunal’s quest for ending illegal coal mining in the state, has accused the latter of having “double standards”.
Pointing at the NGT’s silence on pollution caused by heavy industries and factories, NPP leader and Rajya Sabha member, Wanwei Roy Kharlukhi on Monday said the Tribunal showed “double standard” by imposing a blanket ban on rate-hole coal mining in Meghalaya while turning a blind eye towards industrial pollution.
Kharlukhi said he will move a Zero Hour notice in the Upper House in the next session against the NGT’s “double standards”.
“NGT is against rat-hole coal mining. They went after it and banned it but millions of people are dying because of the pollution caused by industries. What has the NGT done about this?” he questioned.
Stating that the people in Jaintia Hills were surviving on coal for decades, he said that the sudden decision of the NGT to ban rat-hole mining in 2014 affected the revenue of the state and even the district councils.
He argued that rat-hole coal mining affects the environment but pollution caused by heavy industries affect human lives.
According to the NPP leader, the NGT should have conducted a study on how coal mining is affecting rivers.
He also demanded a study on the impact of the ban imposed by the NGT on the people of the state who have been deprived of their livelihood.