'Is This a Joke?': Gauhati HC Expresses Shock as 3,000 Bighas of Tribal Land Handed Over to Pvt Company for Mining

Calling the allotment 'extraordinary', the court observed that Dima Hasao in Assam, where the company was allotted the land, is a 6th scheduled district under the Indian constitution and priority has to be given to the rights of tribal people residing there.

The Wire Staff

is this a joke gauhati hc expresses shock as 3 000 bighas of tribal land handed over to pvt company for mining

Guwahati high court. Photo: PTI/File

New Delhi: The Gauhati high court recently expressed shock over the fact that nearly 3000 bighas of land were given to a private cement company – Mahabal Cements – for mining in the tribal district of Dima Hasao in Assam, Bar and Bench reported.

The bench was hearing a set of pleas on August 12 filed by local villagers seeking directions against their eviction in the region.

Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi, remarked that the company must be “very influential” to have “almost half of the district allotted" in its favour, observing that this was extraordinary.

“What kind of a decision is this? Is this some kind of joke or what? How do you allot 3,000 bighas to a company? Do you understand the magnitude of 3,000 bighas? It will be half of the district,” Justice Medhi asked, as quoted by Bar and Bench.

The counsel for the cement company told the court that the land allotted was barren land and that it was needed for the operation of the company. The bench, however, observed, “Your need is not the issue… the public interest is the issue," as quoted in a LiveLaw report.

It also noted that the Dima Hasao is a 6th scheduled district under the Indian constitution and priority has to be given to the rights and interests of the tribal people residing there.

Umrangso, the area in Dima Hasao where the mining project was planned, is an environmental hotspot owing to its hot springs and a stopover for migratory birds and wildlife, the court recorded and ordered the North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council (NCHAC) to obtain and submit the records regarding the policy of allotting the land to Mahabal Cements.

"A cursory glance into the facts of the case would reveal that the land which has been sought to be allotted is about 3000 bighas which itself appears to be extraordinary," it said.

The next hearing is on September 1.

This article went live on August eighteenth, two thousand twenty five, at eighteen minutes past five in the evening.

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