North Eastern Coalfields, a subsidiary of Coal India, has been found guilty of alleged illegal coal mining in Assam.
The North Eastern Coalfields allegedly mined coal worth Rs 4872 crore without securing mining rights, Justice BP Katakey probe panel report said.
The one-man commission of Justice BP Katakey was constituted after the Assam government in July 2020 ordered an inquiry into allegations of illegal mining in Assam’s Digboi forest division.
The Digboi forest division falls within the Dehing Patkai Elephant Reserve.
Also read: COVID-19 posed challenges, but government focused on improving healthcare: Meghalaya CM
The entire amount should be recovered from the North Eastern Coalfields, the BP Katakey commission recommended the Assam government.
The panel in its report alleged that the North Eastern Coalfields, since 2003, have extracted coal worth nearly Rs 4900 crore from areas where it did not have mining rights.
The company’s mining activity in these areas was illegal, the report said.
“The violation of the provisions of the 1980 Act is writ large on the said stage-I clearance granted by the government of India,” the report added.