
In Patkai hills Assam illegal coal mining affecting environment
Dibrugarh: Illegal coal mining in Ledo-Margherita area of Assam’s Tinsukia district has lost the glory of the Patkai hills.
Ledo-Margherita is naturally rich in coal found in the foothills of Patkai, about 571 km from the capital Guwahati.
Previously, these places were home to the Singpo, Sema Nagas, Tangsa, Tai Phake, Syam, Aitom, Nocte and other communities that have been affected by mining and deforestation in the Patkai Hills.
They are original inhabitants of Patkai hill region but due to mining they had to migrate to Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh.
“Illegal mining is destroying the ecology of the Patkai Hills.
“It has a devastating effect on the region’s environment.
“Due to rampant illegal mining, the flora and fauna of the entire area has been wiped out.
“Ten years ago Patkai hills were green but today they have lost their greenness.
“Earlier, when we passed through the Margherita-Ledo area, we could see greenery at the foothills of the Patkai Hills but now it has lost all its glory,” said senior journalist Rajiv Dutta, who has been working on the environment for the past two years. have been. The collieries at Ledo-Margherita were established from 1885 and were under the administrative control of the Assam Railway and Trading Company.
Coal mining in Ledo-Margherita is carried out in the foothills of the Namdang Hills using various techniques.
Daily laborers from nearby villages, locals and migrants, dig coal with sharp tools, which are carried in gunpowder bags and deposited at designated sites.
Recently, the opposition party Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) alleged that the northeastern state is losing about Rs 2,000 crore in revenue every month due to large-scale flooding in several places, including in Upper Assam’s Tinsukia district. Due to rat hole coal mining.
He has sent a memorandum to the President, Prime Minister, Chief Justice of Supreme Court, Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Chairman of NHRC and Chairman of National Green Tribunal highlighting the issue.
Devojit Moran, an environmentalist, said, “Around 1,000 rat hole mining operations are underway in the Lido-Margarita area of the Patkai Hills.
Coal mafias are extracting coal illegally by mining rats.
Illegal rat hole mining is causing massive damage to the entire biodiversity of the region.
Earlier, there were many bird species found near the Silky Reserve Forest which are not found in the area due to deforestation and illegal mining,” added Moran.
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