JNC say no to public hearing for expansion and shale mining

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaAugust 4, 2023

Though the public hearing for expansion of M/s Meghalaya Cement Ltd at Thangskai village on August 24, next and operation of Shale Mining by M/s Green Valley Cement Ltd at Brichyrnot village on August 25, both in East Jaintia Hills District are still 20 more days to go, the Jaintia National Council (JNC) on Thursday already expressed their stern opposition to the proposed public hearing to be conducted separately.

The JNC leaders submitted a letter to Deputy Commissioner East Jaintia Hills District where they urged him to call off the public hearing for the two new projects.

Asserting their opposition to the two new projects, the JNC said that the presence of the cement companies in the district did not fulfilled the needs and requirements of the local people and the district as a whole pertaining to the employment of the local educated unemployed youth. Presently, only a few numbers of local residents are being employed in the cement companies

The organization said it will only take away the rights and livelihood of the residents and increase the number of influx and residents/people from outside the state.

Moreover, the JNC viewed that there are no job reservation policies in private cement companies in Meghalaya and since these cement companies are located in remote/rural areas, they may prefer or prioritized to hire the local residents and the youth from these areas for certain positions.

The letter claimed that the companies contributed very less towards the development in these areas despite of repeated request through their Business Model i.e., Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).