Bhubaneswar: Leaders of both the ruling Bharatiya Jajata Party (BJP) and opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) have alleged illegal mining and smuggling of coal in Odisha’s Sundargarh district and sought quick steps by the state government
BJD MLA from Sundargarh Jogesh Singh and BJP leader Kusum Tete, a former legislator from the same constituency, have made separate demands for a high-level probe into these illegal activities in the area.
Voicing concern over the racket, Singh demanded a probe either by CBI or the state Crime Branch (CB) into the illegal coal mining which was reportedly unearthed inside Telendihi revenue forest recently.
Lakhs of tonne of coal were illegally extracted and sold to cause loss of thousands of crores of rupees to the government exchequer, the BJD leader alleged.
Influential coal mafia in collusion with some local police and administrative officers are involved in the illegal mining. Since police and government officials are involved, there would be an attempt to suppress the truth, he claimed in a statement.
Claiming that illegal coal mining inside Telendihi forest and nearby areas has been going on for many years, the legislator questioned the claim of local forest authorities that Hemgir tehsil office was informed about the organised coal theft several months back.
He sought to know as to why the Sundargarh divisional forest officer (DFO) was not informed about the illegal mining and whether the Sundargarh collector and other government higher-ups were informed about it. .
Singh said he would write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Mohan Majhi to take a serious note of the illegal coal mining for credible inquiry and arrest of the culprits and attachment of their properties.
Voicing similar concerns, Kusum Tete urged Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to order a high-level investigation into the alleged coal smuggling from the Kulapada-Telendihi reserve forest area in Hemgir block of sundargarh district.
In a letter to the Chief Minister, the former Sundargarh MLA alleged that large-scale illegal coal mining and smuggling have been going on for years, causing massive loss to the state exchequer. She claimed the coal mafia continues to operate with impunity despite the presence of one of Asia’s largest opencast coal mines in the region, run by the Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL).
Tete said that although legal mining operations are underway through lease-holding companies, illegal coal activities in the forest belt surrounding Gopalpur village have reached alarming proportions. “The coal smuggling racket operates over a 30-km radius with more than 100 illegal mining points and around 40 coal stockyards,” she wrote.
According to the BJP leader, the stolen coal is allegedly transported to neighbouring states like Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, and even as far as Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The BJP leader urged the CM to act swiftly and direct a thorough probe to break the coal crime syndicate and protect the state’s resources.
Incidentally, Union Tribal Affairs Minister and Sundargarh MP Jual Oram has reportedly stated that the BJP government in Odisha would seek a detailed report on the illegal coal mining.
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of BJP’s foundation day celebration at Rourkela on the day, he said if the allegations of coal theft are found to be true, stringent action would be taken against those found guilty.
