Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Wednesday said the State has proposed allowing tunnel mining by adopting modern technology to improve miner safety, citing the lack of financial feasibility of open-cast mining in Meghalaya.
Addressing Media persons after the cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said,
“If the tunnel mining can be allowed in a manner in which modern technology like 3D mapping of areas which are of risk can be avoided, certain places where miners can safely enter and measures where mines can be protected and kept stable with infrastructure being created, at the same time modern technology be used where small machines which are not very expensive, and in different parts of the world these kind of mining are happening. If those technologies can be brought in and at least a certain level where we can enter into the more safer provisions and at the same time continue with the aspects of tunnel mining where we can use technology and ensure that the risks are neutralized. That is what we are proposing.”
He said the State has also sought technical guidance from the Union Coal Ministry on suitable technologies that could be adopted for safer mining.
“Of course we asked the Coal Ministry also to suggest us what could be the possible technology we could use because we have been very clear to them that the feasibility of open-cast mining, in terms of financial feasibility, is not something that is working out for our miners and it is leading to too many challenges for us,” Sangma said.
Sangma said the presence of thousands of mines across Meghalaya makes monitoring difficult in the absence of a structured regulatory framework.
“Even today as we speak we have more than 22,000 mines in different parts of the State and it is very, very difficult for us if we don’t have a system. Very difficult for us to monitor, but if we have a system then at least we can ask people to follow that system, follow that process and ensure that safety of the miners is kept as one of the top priorities for us,” he added.
