Guwahati: N Biren Singh, the chief minister of Manipur, has ordered that heavy machinery cannot be used to harvest minerals from riverbeds.
This was stated on February 28 during the 3rd session of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly in response to the motion for calling attention made by Surjakumar Okram, a Congress MLA from the Khangabok seat.
According to Surjakumar, the Thoubal River is getting worse every year as a result of ongoing unlawful sand and stone quarrying. The Manipur High Court ruled, and the relevant government also received a directive to stop unlawful mining in the state. However, careless mining is still being done in numerous locations along the Thoubal River.
“The Thoubal River has been polluted to such a level that not only human but even an animal is unfit to consume its water. The deterioration of Thoubal River aggravates the problem of water scarcity in the region,” he explained while stating that there is a need for a collective effort from all concerned including the home department, the department of commerce and industry, the department of forest and the department of water resources to stop illegal mining successfully.
The earth that has been dug out with a large equipment from neighbouring locations is immediately cleaned or processed upstream of Maphou Dam or Thoubal Dam. These factors have severely contaminated the Thoubal River’s whole course.
He encouraged the state government to enact regulations or take concrete action to stop river degradation and protect the livelihood of the working-class residents who engage in quarrying.
N Biren Singh, the chief minister, responded by saying that the problem of illegal mining in the Thoubal River is a serious one. The state government took the issue seriously and occasionally apprehended numerous individuals involved in illicit mining, but they were later released in accordance with court procedure. Despite its best efforts, the state administration is still unable to totally put an end to this illicit business.
Recently, the state cabinet decided to issue an order rigorously regulating the large-scale illicit mining of riverbeds using powerful machinery. This will essentially stop anyone from engaging in this practise that has a significant negative impact on the ecosystem and the river.
However, he noted, the order will tolerate hand-operated small-scale mining carried out by the underprivileged.
He added that the majority of the locations where illicit mining is unabatedly taking place have been identified by the state administration. Such locations will undergo an assessment of their environmental impact.
The CM also urges residents of the state to increase their efforts and support for resource conservation.