Amidst mounting pressure after the blast at the Mynsyngat-Thangsko in East Jaintia Hills District, the Meghalaya Government has intensified cracked down on illegalities. In a significant reshuffle that underscores the urgency of enforcement, Pankaj Kumar Rasgania, IPS, the officer credited with strengthening the state’s cyber security and technology-driven crime framework, has been posted as Superintendent of Police, East Jaintia Hills District, Khliehriat, with immediate effect.
The district has remained under intense scrutiny following the devastating explosion linked to illegal coal mining activities which claimed over 30 lives, triggering public outrage and renewed demands for accountability.
Rasgania’s transfer from the Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF), Shillong, to East Jaintia Hills is widely being viewed as a strategic deployment at a time when the government faces mounting calls to clamp down on unlawful mining operations and curb entrenched irregularities.
The official order states: “In the interest of public service and on the recommendation of the Civil Services Board(CSB), Shri Vikash Kumar, IPS(RR 2018), Superintendent of Police, East Jaintia Hills District, Khliehriat is transferred and posted as Superintendent of Police, ANTF, Shillong vice Shri Pankaj Kumar Rasgania, IPS, with immediate effect.”
In a corresponding notification, it further reads: “No. HPL 11/2026/4-A-In the interest of public service and on the recommendation of the Civil Services Board(CSB), Pankaj Kumar Rasgania, IPS(RR 2020), Superintendent of Police, ANTF, Shillong is transferred and posted as the Superintendent of Police, East Jaintia Hills District, Khliehriat vice Vikash Kumar, IPS, transferred, with immediate effect.”
The back-to-back orders effectively swap the two IPS officers, placing Rasgania at the forefront of law enforcement in a district grappling with the fallout of the blast and long-standing allegations of illegal coal mining.
