On January 9, Dilseng Sangma, an NGO member, was lynched while he and his colleagues were returning after inspecting a stone quarry. The incident took place in Rajabala in West Garo Hills.
The killing of the NGO member stirred the district administration up from their slumber and prompted them to crack down on illegal quarries. Police also became active in finding the miscreants, and so far, four persons have been arrested.
Does the killing of Dilseng Sangma remind you of any incident? Let’s rewind to 2018. Activists Amita Sangma and Agnes Kharshiing were brutally beaten up by a mob in East Jaintia Hills when they were returning after investigating illegal coal mines. It was by sheer luck that the two activists survived, but not without the lifelong scar of the brutality. Sangma succumbed to his injuries.
Illegal coal mines and stone quarries in Meghalaya have been in the news numerous times, which means neither the administration nor the police is in the dark about such activities. Today, let’s talk about stone quarries in the state. Quarries have been running illegally in many parts of the state. These are not only irreversibly damaging the local ecology but also making life of local villagers miserable. Earlier, Meghalaya Monitor had reported about stone quarries at Nongthymmai-Garo in Jirang constituency in Ri Bhoi. You can read the story from the link given in the description.
Villagers at Nongthymmai-Garo informed Meghalaya Monitor that quarrying was damaging their crops and houses. It has also destroyed their community forest, which helped them survive during the prolonged pandemic lockdown. The constant blasting and the dust from the quarries were affecting their health, and children and the elderly are the most vulnerable.
Last year, Jirang MLA Sosthenes Sohtun led a group of protesters, all of whom were local villagers, against an activist from Guwahati who has been fighting against stone quarry owners operating along the Meghalaya-Assam border and making efforts to save the environment. He was also attacked in the past, and now, he fears for his life and avoids field visits.
So, the trend of attacking activists fighting for the right cause has been there. But who are these attackers? They are common people, locals. And why would they want their hills and forests to vanish? Now, that is not surprising. Greed for money can make anyone shortsighted. While these quarry and mine owners earn in crores, these villagers are under the false impression that quarries and mines, if stopped, will end their livelihood. The same argument was presented by Chief Minister Conrad Sangma several times in the Legislative Assembly.
The truth is, mining and quarrying are the easiest and laziest way of providing employment in a state where the government miserably fails to check unemployment. It is also a way to fill the coffers of politicians while the common people suffer and their future is doomed forever.
It is no longer surprising that illegal stone quarries continue to run rampant in the state, despite NGOs and activists repeatedly raising the issue. It is also not surprising that the state government has not taken any drastic steps, such as shutting down all quarries and heavily penalising the owners.
However, no significant action has been taken so far. The repeat of the 2018-like incident only shows the State’s apathy in tackling the problem of illegal activities and punishing the culprits.
Mining or quarrying is a serious threat to the environment, especially for a sensitive and biodiverse ecology in the North East. There is a need for a concerted action by like-minded citizens to convince political representatives to act sincerely and wisely before it is too late to save the people and their forests and hills.
