Stop illegal coal mining at Tikok: Gauhati HC to govt

GUWAHATI: The Gauhati High Court has directed the Centre and the state government to take steps to stop all illegal coal mining activities in the Tikok open cast project in the Saleki reserve forest.
The bench of Chief Justice Sandeep Mehta and Justice Suman Shyam, while hearing a petition filed by Mrinmoy Khataniar and Amar Jyoti Deka, stated, “Undisputedly it is the obligation of ministry of environment, forest and climate change in collaboration with the state government to ensure that illegal mining activities are not carried out within the state of Assam which is home to the pristine forests which are virtually the lungs of the earth.”
The court directed the officials concerned of the Centre and the state government to ensure that the mining activities being undertaken by the Coal India Limited shall not be allowed unless the conditions mentioned in the letter written by the environment ministry on November 17, 2020 to the deputy conservator of forests, Assam are met.
Petitioner advocate DK Das, who was assisted by advocate RS Chowdhuri and Harish Betala in the case, had submitted before the court that as the central government itself has observed that the Coal India Limited is continuing the mining operation even after expiry of the original lease period, it should be restrained from carrying out the mining operation in violation of the provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 till all penalties and compensatory levis are deposited and Stage II approval for the project is granted by environment ministry.
Meanwhile, RKD Choudhury, deputy solicitor general of India, submitted that as a matter of fact, the Coal India Limited has stopped its mining activities in the reserved forest areas and the mining activities are actually being carried out by other persons or entities.
Das said the original lease of the OCP was granted to Coal India Limited, Margherita in 1973 for a period of 30 years, which expired in 2003.
The environment ministry accords prior approval on proposals of the state/Union Territory government in two stages — first in-principle or Stage-I approval and final or Stage-II approval, which is accorded only on compliance of the conditions of the Stage-I.