NGT directs Rajasthan government to rehabilitate villagers affected by mining

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Rajasthan government to constitute a committee of competent officials to conduct inquiry and take measures to rehabilitate pollution victims away from proximity to limestone mining with crushers near Jodhpura village in Rajasthan.

In Jodhpura village in Kotputli-Behror district of Rajasthan, a group of villagers under the “Jodhpura-Mohanpura Sangarsh Samiti” have been protesting against a cement factory in the village for over 1,000 days. The factory has a mine and two associated crushers.

The petitioners in the case, a group of villagers, had directed the Rajasthan government to rehabilitate pollution victims away from proximity to limestone mining including crushers.

“There is unavoidable impact on human habitation due to installation of stone crushers within the restricted area and the government primary school has already suffered damage in the form of cracks due to blasting activities and there is grave danger to the students in the school,” the NGT verdict in the November 3 case said.

The judgment was delivered by the Central Zone Bench of the NGT in Bhopal, comprising judicial member Sheo Kumar Singh and expert member Sudhir Kumar Chaturvedi.

“The Chief Secretary of the State of Rajasthan is also directed to constitute a committee of competent officials to inquire and take measures to rehabilitate the victims of pollution away from proximity to limestone mining with crushers,” the report said.

The judgment states that there has been widespread impact on households in the area and that cracks have appeared in most houses and even recently built houses. “They also suffered from noise and air pollution, which have already caused widespread health effects and mental disorders,” the judgment said.

The NGT has ordered to give ₹50,000 each to villagers whose houses have been damaged as per an official list, and ₹20,000 each to villagers as per another list for environmental damage and health impacts.

“The respondent/project proponent (cement company) is further directed to immediately carry out the water recharge and water conservation works in and around the mine site and shall ensure that there is sufficient water to recover the loss of groundwater that has taken place after the commencement of the project to ensure the availability of water for future generations. The Central Groundwater Authority (CGWA) in this regard shall provide technical guidance and monitor the groundwater recharge in the area and in no case shall water extraction from the ground are greater than the water recharge in the soil,” the judgment said.

Neelam Ahluwalia, founder of ‘People for Aravallis’, a group of citizens and activists fighting for the protection of the Aravalli range, said numerous rural communities living in the lap of India’s oldest mountain range in the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Haryana are suffering like the residents of Jodhpura village. “Illegal mining is destroying the hills, rivers, forests and groundwater of this region. Licensed mining operators are also blatantly flouting the rules. This must stop in the Aravalli range to protect what is left of Northwest India’s barrier to desertification, critical water recharge zone, pollution sink, climate regulator and wildlife habitat,” she said.

In September, The Hindu had reported that with stone mining bringing stone crushers close to villages in southern Haryana and northwestern Rajasthan, including Jodhpura village, people have complained of health problems and falling groundwater levels in recent decades.