Criminal Nexus: NGT pulls up Haryana govt over illegal mining

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Chandigarh, August 23

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has hit out at the Haryana Government over continued illegal mining in the Aravallis and commented that its Action Taken Report (ATR) had nothing on the action being taken to control illegal mining in “quantified terms”.

Discussing a case of illegal mining at Rithoj village in Gurugram, it said “despite repeated directions passed by this tribunal to reinforce the Sustainable Sand Management Guidelines (SSMG)-2016 read with Enforcement & Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining (EMGSM)-2020 and to develop a mechanism to control the illegal mining for which the State and Mining Department is statutorily bound to take action against the violators of law, complaints and applications of illegal mining causing irreversible damage to the natural ecosystem, wildlife habitat, air pollution and further degrading, devastating of Aravalli Hills, are reported”.

In this case, the expert committee, set up by the tribunal, found “irrefutable signs of recent/fresh mining and transportation of sand about which no permit or plausible explanation or action taken report was available till the day of inspection”. Also, the mining conditions regarding the felling of trees without permission and restricting the depth of digging to 9 ft have been violated.

It has also been pointed out that “subsequent land levelling/compacting may obliterate small bodies and impoverish sub-surface moisture regime”. Denudation may increase evaporation losses and enhance the absorption of solar heat.

The site in question adjoins the Aravallis, which makes an important wildlife habitat and a narrow wildlife corridor from Mount Abu to Delhi. “The ecology of the tract is already under stress due to biotic pressure from both sides of the Aravalli hills. The indiscriminate mining in this area is poised to cause irreversible damage to the natural ecosystem, wildlife habitat, enhance air pollution and add to global warming,” added the committee.

During the hearing yesterday, the Haryana State Pollution Control Board informed the NGT that the Chief Secretary had constituted a seven-member Aravalli Rejuvenation Board (ARB), with the DC of the district concerned as chairman, to deal with complaints on illegal mining, maintaining coordination between concerned departments, maintaining ecological balance, and prevention of eco-sensitive zone.

On the ATR filed in the matter, the NGT observed, “There is nothing in a report as to what action has been taken by the authorities concerned to control the illegal mining in quantified terms. It is the pious/legal duty of the state/state authorities to control illegal mining, thus, we direct the authorities to report action taken within three months.”

It added, “The next report should categorically furnish status on assessment on environmental damage that already occurred in Aravalli districts (Faridabad, Gurugram, and Nuh) and their rejuvenation/restoration. There has to be information made available in the public domain on not doing illegal mining in Aravalli Hills and declaring the entire area as environmentally sensitive. Time-bound action plan on the restoration of the Aravalli districts of Haryana may be filed with the report.”

No stone-crusher in Aravallis

Narhari Singh Banger, Director, Mines and Geology, told the NGT in the Aravalli Bachao Citizens Movement case that 206 stone-crushers/screening plants were operating in Faridabad (80), Gurugram (31), and Nuh (95). However, there was no stone-crusher in the Aravalli region. This was in reply to the NGT’s specific question on how stone-crushers were operating when mining was banned in the area.