Lawyer asked JHADC to cancel NOC issued to Meghatop Cement Limited

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaAugust 16, 2024

Charging the Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) for issuing No Objection Certificate (NOC) to M/s Meghatop Cement Private Limited (MCPL) without the consent of Dorbar Elaka Narpuh, upcoming lawyer of East Jaintia Hills District, Kynjaimon Amse demanded the immediate cancellation of the NOC and also threatened to take legal course to quash the NOC given by the JHADC.

In a letter sent to the Chief Forest Officer, Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) on Friday, Amse said that NOC was issued by the JHADC to the said Company vide No. JHADC/FOR/39/2022 Dated Jowai the 3rd July 2023 for setting up a 3 million Ton with 50 MW Captive Power Plant WHRS system and captives Mines for Cement plant at Wahiajer, Elaka Narpuh, East Jaintia Hills District in contrary to the due process of law. He also said that the NOC was issued to the said company despite the fact that the JHADC cannot and will not issue NOC to any corporate body for establishing a cement plant within Elaka Narpuh without the NOC from the Dorbar Elaka Narpuh.

Amse said as per official replies by the JHADC to his queries sought under RTI he understands that an NOC was obtained by the MCPL from the Dorbar Elaka/ Dalloi, Elaka Narpuh for M/s Megha Top Cement Private Ltd and subsequently the JHADC on the strength of the said NOC also issued NOC for M/s Meghatop Cement Private Ltd for setting up a cement plant at Wahiajer, Elaka Narpuh.

Informing that Provisional NOC was issued by the Dolloi, Elaka Narpuh dated 3rd November 2022, Amse said that the NOC reads “This is to certify that the No Objection Certificate for setting up of Cement Plant by Meghatop Cement Private Limited at Narpuh Village is under consideration by the Dorbar of Elaka Narpuh. I do hereby assure that the NOC will be issued once the Dorbar of Elaka is passed the resolution.”

 He reasoned that the provisional NOC cannot be treated as an NOC as it was just an assurance from the Dolloi and there was no mentioned that the Dorbar Elaka Narpuh or the Dolloi issued NOC to MCPL for setting up a cement plant within Elaka Narpuh. He also questioned how can the JHADC treats such document as a NOC and went ahead to issue NOC to MCPL. He also added  “either the M/s Megha Top Cement Private Ltd misled the JHADC or the JHADC’s Forest Department has been negligent on this matter of the document issued by the Dolloi Elaka Narpuh.”

Reminding that the JHADC exist to protect the rights of the indigenous people and its custom and not for the welfare of corporate bodies and granting them NOC without taking the people into confidence and without thinking about the welfare of the people, Amse  asserted, “it  is a custom and also a law in our Elaka Narpuh, that NOC cannot be granted to any corporate body and that no one can establish a factory in Elaka Narpuh without the consent of the Dorbar Elaka Narpuh which in this case the JHADC has issued NOC to a corporate body illegally without NOC from the Dorbar Elaka Narpuh.” He also said that without the NOC from Dorbar Elaka Narpuh, the NOC issued by JHADC for M/s Megha Top Cement Private Ltd is void ab initio and invalid and illegal.