Over 13 lakh tonnes of coal missing in Meghalaya; HC panel seeks detailed inquiry

A committee appointed by the Meghalaya High Court has sought a detailed inquiry into the shortage of 13.02 lakh tonnes of inventoried coal and called for fixation of responsibility on those responsible for its disappearance.

The committee headed by Justice (retd) B P Katakey also flagged that legal action was yet to be completed in connection with a substantial quantity of illegally mined coal found missing from outside Coal India Limited depots.

“There is no dispute relating to the shortage of 13,02,456.184 MT coal (32,56,715 MT minus 19,54,258.816 MT), even if the actual physical verification conducted by the Deputy Commissioners [is] accepted,” the committee said in its 41st interim report submitted to the High Court.

The panel said a detailed inquiry was required to fix responsibility for the disappearance of the inventoried coal, particularly in view of the Supreme Court's direction treating the state government as the receiver and custodian of the coal.

The 13.02 lakh tonnes of missing coal would amount to roughly 52,000 truckloads, assuming a payload of 25 tonnes per truck. At a rate of 100 trucks a day, transporting such a quantity would take about 520 days, or nearly one year and five months.

33,307 tonnes of illegally mined coal still needed legal action

The committee also examined the disappearance of illegally mined coal identified outside CIL depots.

“Of the 37,449.53 tonnes identified as missing, FIRs had initially been filed for only 4,141.83 tonnes, leaving 33,307.7 tonnes requiring further legal action,” it said.

The panel had earlier recommended immediate registration of FIRs for the entire missing quantity and expeditious completion of investigations.

The state subsequently informed the committee on September 17 that FIRs had been lodged for the entire quantity. However, the committee noted that the relevant police station case numbers and the status of the investigations had not been furnished.

The issue of missing illegally mined coal had also figured in earlier interim reports of the Katakey committee.

No rat-hole mine closed or fenced

The committee further noted that not a single rat-hole coal mine had been closed or fenced till date, despite repeated directions aimed at securing abandoned mine openings.

It said the state's action plan for closure and fencing was still pending, while a final decision on the implementation of detailed project reports was awaited.

The panel also recorded a fresh alleged case of illegal mining at Sakhain village in East Jaintia Hills district. An FIR was registered at Khliehriat police station on September 3 after the digging of a fresh coal pit was reported.

However, the committee noted that the police report did not mention seizure of the equipment allegedly used for mining, despite the equipment being visible in photographs.

Action plan awaits approval

The comprehensive action plan prepared by the Mining and Geology Department to prevent, detect and control illegal coal mining and transportation was also awaiting approval from the competent authority.

The plan includes identification of vulnerable areas and fixation of responsibility on officials concerned.

At the same time, the state has notified a revised procedure for transportation of scientifically mined coal in Meghalaya. The procedure, notified on September 14, includes measures intended to prevent illegally mined coal from being transported as legally mined coal.

The committee also noted that compensation had not yet been paid to the next of kin of Durba Rai, whose body was recovered from an unprotected illegal coal mine pit in East Jaintia Hills earlier this year. A police case was registered in connection with the death.

The 41st interim report is part of the committee's continuing monitoring of compliance with directions issued by the Meghalaya High Court, the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal concerning illegal and rat-hole coal mining in the state.