Chief Minister Conrad Sangma today said that providing alternative livelihood to those affected by coal mining ban has been the policy and strategy of the government in the last six years.
It may be noted that the Meghalaya High Court had recently emphasised the need for the State government to provide alternative sources of livelihood to individuals who have been affected by the ban on coal mining activities in the State.
“This has precisely been the policy and strategy of the government in the last six years,” Sangma said, adding that for this particular reason all the mission mode programmes were initiated to benefit those affected by the coal mining ban.
On plans to restart scientific mining in the State, the chief minister said that the matter is at the public hearing stage and the process from the central government has been completed.
He said that the Centre did not have norms for a land holding system for a State like Meghalaya.
Sangma said that the difficult part was how to apply for a mining lease in a land tenure system like Meghalaya. He also said that certain environmental aspects have to be looked into.
The Ministry of Coal has given the green light to the geological reports of four out of 17 applicants vying for prospective licenses for coal mining in Meghalaya.
