PTI, SHILLONG: The Meghalaya government Tuesday ordered implementation of the Supreme Court order banning transportation of coal with immediate effect, officials said.
Chief Secretary Y Tsering issued the order directing authorities to ensure compliance of the directions of the Supreme Court without fail, they said.
The apex court banned transportation of coal in the state forthwith until the next hearing on February 19, refusing a plea by the miners to send extracted coal left to transport since the 2014 National Green Tribunal ban on mining.
In pursuance of the directions of the Supreme Court in its sitting Tuesday as communicated by the learned advocate general, transportation of coal in the state of Meghalaya is hereby stopped with immediate effect, Tsering said in his order.
The ban comes a week after a citizens forum in Meghalaya, in which RTI activists Agnes Kharshiing was part of, demanded the Supreme Court to issue a complete ban on coal mining/transportation in the state citing that there has been absolute loss in terms of revenue from the industry and that all indices in the mining district are down with 76 per cent of people landless.
The forum alleged collusions between the state government and the illegal coal miners wherein the courts and the NGT were misled on several occasions on the total amount of extracted coal waiting to be transported.
The Supreme Court has also rapped the Meghalaya government for failing to curb illegal mining and has asked it to file an affidavit.
Former chief minister and Leader of Opposition Mukul Sangma hit out at the state government.
