Bhubaneswar: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has come down heavily against the Keonjhar district administration and the state government for their alleged failure to curb cases of illegal mining in the region.
The NGT was hearing a petition relating to rampant illegal laterite mining in the Madanpur area under the Ghasipura region of the district. The NGT lambasted the district administration and made categorical remarks.
In its written order the NGT said, “The status report reveals lawlessness prevailing in the area as illegal mining is being given a free run and no effective measures appear to have been taken to stop such activities. Sporadic action which appears to have been taken would not amount to effective action for protection of the environment. From the rampant illegal mining going on in the area, we can reasonably infer that there is something dark at the bottom.”
The NGT also lambasted the district administration for putting the blame on the villagers for undertaking the illegal mining activities. The NGT dissed the argument of the district administration in their status report that the illegal mining works are done by the villagers.
The tribunal said, “The photographs demonstrate that JCBs are being used for extracting the mineral and the mining activity is being carried out at a large scale in an organized manner making it difficult to accept that it is the villagers who are doing it for domestic use as claimed.”
The NGT, in their written order, claimed that the rampant illegal mining is being carried out “with impunity” in the region and that the amounts recovered admittedly are against royalty and penalty imposed under a specific statute which is distinct from environmental compensation and the cost of restitution, remediation and restoration of the environment under several laws. It also castigated the state government for failing to prosecute the offenders.
In its latest order, it has asked the district administration to take steps expeditiously to prohibit further illegal mining in the area.
The green body has now asked to seize the illegally mined minerals, rehabilitation of the mining degraded land, assessment of the damage caused to the environment due to illegal mining. It has also asked the Collector and SP of Keonjhar to deploy security personnel for effective implementation of the NGT directions.
