The sub-divisional officer, the officer-in-charge of the Kharsang police station, and the assistant mineral development officer formed a sub-divisional level task team that raided an unlicensed LAMC coke factory in Changlang district. The Namchik-Namphuk coal mine is 900 meters away from this plant, which is purportedly using coal from an illegal mining site. Two weeks before the attack, the facility had just reopened after being closed in 2023 due to objections from GeoEnpro Petroleum Ltd.
There were serious safety and legal issues because the factory was close to one of the company’s drilling wells. Concurrently, the Shillong regional office of the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change has been asked to provide explanation on possible infractions within the Namchik-Namphuk coal mine’s authorized 128.97-hectare area. Discrepancies were discovered during the Stage-II forest clearance process through a computerized survey, which showed that non-forestry activities had taken place outside of the 39.02 hectares that were approved.
The winning bidder for the coal mine, M/s Coal Pulz Pvt Ltd, is awaiting Stage-II forest permission for the remaining 89.95 hectares. Back in 2006, the first 39.02 hectares were approved and given to the Arunachal Pradesh Mineral Development & Trading Corporation Limited. The approval process has also been made more difficult by alleged illicit mining operations.
