A full bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee, Justices HS Thangkhiew and W Diengdoh proposed that an independent committee be formed to carry out the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) and Supreme Court’s directives and recommendations in the matter.
“District Magistrates, Sub-Divisional Officers, and even Block Level Officers, as well as their counterparts from the police up to the Superintendent of Police, are all in place, but they all turn a blind eye to illegal activities. It is safe to say that the scene in and around Khliehriat speaks of vast stretches beyond the administration’s purview, and it is impossible that illegal mining activities and the deposit of freshly mined coal would be carried out with such impunity without the possible connivance of the local administration, or even worse, without the involvement of the local administration “According to the Court.
The full bench was hearing a suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) plea on the continuing practise in the state.
The High Court took suo motu cognizance of a newspaper article highlighting the prevalence of rat-hole mining in the State’s West Khasi Hills district on February 23 this year.
In Meghalaya, rat-hole mining is a method of excavation in which miners travel through 150-meter-long horizontal tunnels excavated against deep vertical shafts.
After the Supreme Court overturned a 2014 ruling by the National Green Tribunal that ordered a blanket ban on coal mining in Meghalaya, the state is gradually resuming mining in a limited capacity.
Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice W Diengdoh of the Supreme Court of India have requested the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police of Meghalaya to submit a report after visiting the region.
The Bench had frequently emphasised the importance of the problem in its brief order of February 23, stating:
“The case must be investigated immediately… The Court has directed [the Additional Advocate-General] to relay this order to the competent personnel as soon as possible. The situation necessitates immediate and serious action.”
The chief secretary had sent a report after touring the affected districts with the judges on the current Bench, as per the court’s direction in the matter.
The Bench stated in its order issued last week that it was obvious even while driving along the highways that fresh coal had been deposited in mounds on both sides of the road spanning tens of kilometres.
“The coal appeared to be newly mined because it was shiny black,” the Court said.
It went on to say that the practise was still widespread, and probably even more so in remote places, implying that the Supreme Court’s directions had not been followed.
“The Chief Secretary to the State is responsible for implementing such directions, and the Chief Secretary remains obligated to ensure that all illegal mining activities are stopped without further ado or delay,” the Bench added, directing the Chief Secretary to file a detailed and specific resort when the matter is listed again in four weeks, on April 4, 2022.
The High Court emphasised that the top court’s rulings, directions, and recommendations, as well as those of the NGT, must be followed.
“It further appears that the State has done precious little to ensure the transportation of previously mined coal and the sale of such coal through Coal India Limited, as directed by the Supreme Court and the NGT, resulting in the current unsatisfactory condition,” the Court noted.
The Bench thus demanded the formation of a committee to oversee the implementation of all of these decisions, stressing that the committee “must have the freedom and authority to work without political interference.”
On March 7, 2022, the respondents were represented by Advocate-General A Kumar and Government Advocate R Colney.
Case: In Re Suo Motu Illegal Mining of Coal in the State of Meghalaya.
