30 Dead in Meghalaya Mine Explosion; NGT Issues Notice

The death toll in the blast incident at an illegal coal mining site in the Thangskoo area of East Jaintia Hills district has risen to 30. Deputy Commissioner of East Jaintia Hills, Manish Kumar, informed the media that the explosion occurred on the morning of February 5. The district administration received information in the afternoon and immediately rushed to the site. In coordination with the state government, the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force, and Search and Rescue Teams were mobilised and rescue operations began the same day and continued till February 9. Initially, 28 deaths were confirmed, while two more victims succumbed to injuries at Silchar Medical College in Assam, taking the total number of fatalities to 30. The Deputy Commissioner said the district administration is processing ex-gratia payments for the next of kin. Meanwhile, the district administration has launched a strict enforcement drive against illegal coal mining. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), has taken suo motu cognizance of a media report and observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise serious issues of violation of human rights of the victims. It has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Meghalaya, calling for a detailed report on the matter within two weeks. Reports state that the National Green Tribunal has also taken suo motu cognisance of a February 6 media report about the blast and issued notices to the Central Pollution Control Board, the regional office of the environment ministry in Shillong, the state’s chief secretary, and the East Jaintia Hills deputy commissioner, seeking affidavits to clarify whether its earlier mining-related orders and norms were violated.