SHILLONG: In a scathing indictment of the ruling dispensation, Meghalaya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) President Vincent H. Pala has alleged that a sophisticated system of “extortion and illegality” has brought the state’s coal industry to its knees.
Pala claims that while the government puts on a show of legality through official auctions, an unofficial and exorbitant “gunda tax” collected on the highways has made it financially impossible for legitimate businesses to operate.
The allegations come on the heels of a staggering report by the Justice (retired) B.P. Katakey Committee. The data reveals a near-total collapse of the official sale process: out of over 2.13 lakh metric tonnes of coal put up for auction last year, a mere 3,563 metric tonnes were actually sold—a dismal 1.67% success rate.
“Coal India has done the auction, but there are no takers,” Pala stated, pointing to a bizarre paradox where high market demand is being stifled by even higher illegal demands. “The coal was not transported because on the way, there is a huge collection of money. The government’s gunda tax is higher than the demand.”
Pala didn’t pull any punches regarding where this “missing” revenue is going. He accused those in power of bypassing the state treasury to line the pockets of private individuals.
”The government doesn’t get revenue, but individuals are getting huge revenue for their personal benefits,” Pala charged. “With that money, they buy leaders, they build hotels, they make buildings. They are living with illegality.”
The MPCC Chief further alleged that this “black money” is being used to manipulate the political landscape, suggesting that the illegalities extend beyond coal to include drugs and cattle smuggling.
Questioning the integrity of official reports, Pala suggested that the data provided to the Katakey Committee by district administrations is inconsistent and potentially manipulated. He noted that coal often “appears” on roadsides only to be labeled as “new mining” by authorities, despite the presence of drone surveillance.
“Today a report says there is coal; tomorrow they say it’s illegal; the day after they say auction it,” Pala said, describing a cycle of bureaucratic confusion that serves to mask ongoing illegal extraction.
The root of the crisis, according to Pala, dates back to the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) sudden ban on mining. He argued that the ban was implemented without a transition plan or rehabilitation for those who have relied on the industry for over 60 years.
”You cannot just stop like that without a proper policy,” he remarked, citing the failure of the government to provide alternative livelihoods for workers in the Garo, Jaintia, and Khasi Hills. This vacuum, he claims, has forced locals back into illegal mining just to survive, while the “big fish” profit from the lack of oversight.
