Meghalaya HC panel flags 13 lakh tonnes of unaccounted coal and failure to secure abandoned rat-hole mines
Shillong: More than 13 lakh metric tonnes of inventoried coal remain unaccounted for in Meghalaya, with a committee appointed by the Meghalaya High Court calling for a detailed inquiry to fix responsibility for the shortage.
The Justice (retd) B.P. Katakey-led committee, in its 41st interim report, recorded a difference of 13,02,456.184 metric tonnes between the 32,56,715 MT of coal earlier inventoried and 19,54,258.816 MT physically verified by Deputy Commissioners. The committee said the discrepancy requires investigation, particularly as the state was responsible for safeguarding the coal.
The report also found that not a single abandoned rat-hole mine has been closed or fenced, despite repeated directions from the courts and the committee. The state’s closure and fencing plans remain pending.
The panel further flagged incomplete investigations into 37,449.53 MT of illegally mined coal that went missing outside designated Coal India Limited depots, along with limited follow-up action in illegal mining cases.
A fresh suspected illegal mining case was also recorded at Sakhain village in East Jaintia Hills, where an FIR was registered after a newly excavated pit was detected. The Meghalaya High Court has described the 41st report as “revealing and exhaustive” and sought a detailed response from the state.
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