SHILLONG, AUG 29: Stakeholders under the banner of the Movement for Indigenous People’s Rights and Livelihood-Meghalaya (MIPRLM) said they would intensify agitations to protest against livelihood deprivation that came as result of the ban on rat-hole coal mining by National Green Tribunal (NGT).
MIPRLM also resolved to ask the Meghalaya government to pass a resolution in the state assembly for exempting NGT from Meghalaya.
Hundreds of people attending the public rally held at Polo Ground on Friday stood up in support of the resolution to intensify agitations against the ban.
“We would have to chalk-out strategies on how to go about displaying our protests against the ban,” MIPRLM chairman Herald S Dkhar told the gathering. According to him, agitational strategies are required to be proper so that the movement does not put its feet on the wrong ground.
MIPRLM vice chairman Erwin K Sutnga informed that the core committee of the movement is likely to meet on Monday to discuss the resolutions taken at the meeting.
MIPRLM handed the resolutions of the meeting to the chief minister Mukul Sangma who attended the public rally before he went off to Delhi.
“We strongly suggested to the government of Meghalaya to move the centre for immediate de-notify the jurisdiction of the NGT from Meghalaya by resorting to the provision of the sub section 3 of section 4 of the NGT Act 2010,” Sutnga said.
In the representation, the MIPRLM urged the state government to move and pass a resolution to exempt from the purview of the NGT Act under para 12 A (b) of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution of India in the Meghalaya legislative assembly.
“Besides, we also urged the government to come out with a while paper on the allegation of child labour in the coal mining areas by certain ngos who have make wide national and international publicity in this regard,” the Sutnga stated.
On the impact of the ban on the livelihood aspect, the MIPRLM demanded the Meghalaya government to immediately undertake relief measures for the affected people of the state.
According to MIPRLM, the serious social and economic impact the ban had is the mass population migration from rural to urban areas even as it warned the government and society at large that it will face consequential situations like chronic unemployment, rise of crime and economic stagnation.
Apart from reviewing the present Meghalaya Mines and Minerals Policy, 2012, Sutnga said, “We also want the government to move the NGT to allow moratorium on the blanket ban to enable the state government to fulfill the needs of restoring and protecting the environment as well as to put mining regulation in place which will not affect the inherent traditional rights.”
Stating that committee set up by the NGT will expired on August 31, Sutnga said the government should not extend further by extending time by NGT since release of the present existing stocks of coal in the depots will be one form of relief to the affected people.
Alleging there are reports of number of dropout of school children, the MIPRLM requested the state government to ensure remedial measures to ensure re-enrollment of students in the coal mine areas.- By Our Reporter
