Ranchi | Jan 12, 2015: Chief minister Raghubar Das today attacked the deeply entrenched caucus of corruption rampant in Jharkhand - illegal mining worth thousands of crores - by directing chief secretary Sajal Chakraborty and director general of police (DGP) Rajeev Kumar, as well as district SPs and DCs, to rein in the menace.
"It is the onus and responsibility of the DC and SP concerned to ensure no cases of illegal mining are reported. If such reports from any district come, the government will take disciplinary action against them (DCs and SPs). If their involvement is found in illegal mining, a thorough inquiry would be conducted and stern action taken," Das said after holding a review meeting with chief secretary Chakraborty and DGP Kumar at Project Building this afternoon.
But, Das's call of " avaid khanan ko tatkal rokne ki karwahi sunischit ki jaye (drive to stop illegal mining)" will be tough to implement as it involves huge money oiling a nexus of politicians, policemen, bureaucrats, industrialists, traders and transporters, down to the humble cyclists carrying stolen coal.
Reports of illegal coal mining have surfaced recently in Hazaribagh, Chatra, Ramgarh and other districts amid allegations of patronage against public representatives, district officials and the police. Over-exploitation of iron ore reserves of West Singhbhum was pointed out in the Justice M.B. Shah Commission report in the recent past.
According to norms, companies initially submit their proposed annual mining plan to the state government, which forwards its copy to the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) for approval.
The commonest trick companies use is to submit modest proposals to get speedy approvals. But once the mining plan is approved, companies allegedly bribe government officials, including police personnel, to excavate coal or ore many times more than what was originally specified.
The state mining department also gives challans or transport permits to companies, referring to specific number of trucks or rakes to ferry ore or coal. In reality, this specification is dispensed with quickly, as companies depute transporters to send more vehicles than what was mentioned in the challan.
In this process, a lot of money changes hands, allegedly a significant amount going to the DCs and SPs. Reportedly, with many politicians and bureaucrats on the gravy train, if someone refuses to be a part of this nexus, he or she faces covert or overt threats to toe the line.
As a result, even taskforces at the level of state mines and geology and forest departments and district administration have not been able to rein in illegal mining.
(Source: http://www.telegraphindia.com/)