4,000 tonnes of illegally mined coal vanish in Meghalaya; HC seeks answers

The Meghalaya HC noted that the missing stock of 4,000 MT coal had earlier been surveyed and recorded, yet 'unidentified persons' managed to lift and move it, exposing failures in ground-level enforce

The Meghalaya High Court has pulled up the state government after nearly 4,000 metric tonnes (MT) of illegally mined coal ‘disappeared’ from two coal depots in Rajaju and Diengngan villages both in Ranikor Block of South West Khasi Hills district, PTI reported. The missing stock had earlier been officially surveyed and recorded, raising serious concerns about enforcement and accountability.

 

A High Court bench led by Justice HS Thangkhiew, directed the state authorities to identify individuals and officials responsible for allowing the illegal transport of coal that had already been flagged for action.

 

The disclosure was part of the 31st interim report submitted by the Justice (Rtd) BP Katakey Committee, which is monitoring coal mining and transportation in the state.

 

 

Huge discrepancies in actual coal found 

According to the committee’s findings, only 2.5 MT of coal was found at Diengngan against the earlier recorded 1,839.03 MT. In Rajaju, just 8 MT remained out of 2,121.62 MT recorded by the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA). The court noted that this coal had been identified much earlier, yet “unidentified persons” managed to lift and move it, exposing failures in ground-level enforcement.

 

State govt asked to trace culprits, file FIRs 

The court ordered the state government to take urgent steps to trace those responsible and hold officials accountable. It also directed authorities to clarify what actions had been taken on applications from individuals claiming their coal stocks were omitted during UAV surveys. 

The state’s status report confirmed FIRs had been filed in Rajaju, Diengngan, and South Garo Hills, but it failed to give any update on investigation outcomes, prompting the court to seek further clarification.

 

Court flags delays, seeks audit update

 

The court also took note of other unresolved issues flagged by the Katakey Committee, including delays in auctioning inventoried coal at Coal India Limited depots and the ongoing audit of coke oven plants. It was informed that auctions are currently paused, and audit findings will be submitted at the next hearing.

 

Next hearing scheduled for August 25 

Taking into account the pending issues, illegal coal movement, auction delays, mine closures, and enforcement gaps, the High Court scheduled the next hearing for August 25. It also directed that copies of the committee’s 31st interim report be shared with all relevant parties for compliance. 

 

(With agency inputs)