HC bans mining in Bageshwar district of Uttarakhand
HC bans mining in Bageshwar district of Uttarakhand
B.D.Kasniyal
Pithoragarh, Jan 7
Uttarakhand High Court, taking cognizance of reports submitted by court commissioners, banned all mining activities in Bageshwar district of Uttarakhand on January 7. It will affect operation in all 160 soapstone mines of the district presently in existence.
A double bench of high court consisting Chief Justice G Narendra and Justice Manoj Tiwari has also ordered Uttarakhand, Secretary, Mining and Secretary, industry to appear personally before the court on January 9, to present their view point on the matter as the court commissioners have observed several flaws in implementing respective policies of these directorates concerning mining rules in Bageshwar.
The Court, taking cognizance of some newspaper reports of concerned expressed by the villagers on uncontrolled mining in Bageshwar and its’ effect on the lives and environment had appointed a court commissioners team, consisting two leading lawyers namely Mayank Ranjan Joshi and Sarang Dhulia.
“After been appointed as court commissioner to take realistic stock of mines in Bageshwar on December 9, 2024, we left for site on December 13, last year and visited mines at Kande, Kanyal, Kanda Tharp of Kanda sub-division and mines of Reema area in Kapkot area, “said Sarang Dhulia, one of the team member.
The ban came after court observed that the rampant mining in the district has not only encroached forest land but also government land depriving villagers of their traditional natural resources of water, grazing and agricultural land besides affecting temples and terrains as well as existing infrastructure near these affected villages.
“The soapstone mining that was permitted by government some 30 years ago with the intention to provide employment to villagers, has now turned killer of natural resources in respective villages, that the villagers could not anticipate,” said Sajjan Lal Tamta, a political worker who have also filed petitions in high court complaining about destruction of natural sources due to irregulated soapstone mining in Bageshwar district
“The people in villages of Reema, Kande Kanyal who were most affected villages of Kanda and Kapkot sub- division have welcomed court’s decision as it will save their natural sources,” said Tamta.
The Court commissioner team has mentioned in their report submitted to high court that the villagers have told them that 24 hours regular mining in their respective areas is not only encroaching their Van panchayat land but also making it difficult to reside there due to air, sound pollution, land subsidence, irregular drinking supply in some natural sources and drying up of some other water resources.”The poor villages in Kandey Kanyal have said that they want to leave the place as other who could afford had already left but they are not in position to shift due to poverty,” mentioned the court commissioner in their report.
” Neither the miners are doing scientific mining and protecting land by making protection walls, but also avoiding even payments to land owners.The absence of labour laws and damage to natural sources has been enormous in these areas,” said the court commissioners in their report filed before the high court.
