SC refuses to lift ban on mining in Uttarakhand district
The Supreme Court upheld the Uttarakhand HC's order suspending mining in Bageshwar, citing severe environmental and safety concerns.
The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to interfere with a judicial order suspending all mining activities in Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar district, citing alarming findings of environmental degradation and safety risks detailed in a report submitted by court commissioners.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and justices Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan made it clear that it would not disturb the Uttarakhand high court’s directions, calling the report “damning” and urging mining operators to approach the high court instead.
“This is serious. We are not going to interfere with this order,” remarked the bench while declining relief to the mining companies challenging the high court’s decision earlier this month.
Senior advocate Dhruv Mehta, representing Katiyar Mining and Industrial Corporation, argued that the report was prepared by lawyers and not experts. However, the bench dismissed the contention, stating: “They may not be experts, but they have done a fairly good job.”
Another senior advocate, Shyam Divan, appearing for a different mining company, pointed out that a similar matter was pending before the National Green Tribunal (NGT), which had set up its own committee to investigate. The court, however, reiterated that the petitioners should return to the high court, noting that the order was only interim in nature.
At this point, Mehta sought permission to withdraw the petition with liberty to approach the Supreme Court again, but the bench was firm in its stance. “No liberty,” it stated. The court subsequently passed an order allowing the petition to be withdrawn, making it clear that it was “not inclined to entertain” the challenge against the high court’s ruling.
The set of appeals by the miners stems from a January 6 order of the Uttarakhand high court, which imposed an immediate suspension of all mining activities in Bageshwar after a judicial report highlighted severe environmental and safety concerns. The high court bench of chief justice G Narendar and justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari described the report as “shocking” and criticised the local administration for turning a blind eye to widespread illegal mining.
“The report is not merely alarming but also shocking. The report and the photographs clearly demonstrate complete lawlessness by the miners and are proof of the local administration ignoring the transgressions,” the high court observed at the time.
According to the report, extensive mining had led to the formation of deep crevasses, raising the risk of landslides. The court noted that continued mining in the district posed an immediate danger to human lives, particularly in areas where operations were being carried out at the base of hillocks with residential settlements above them. “The photographs also indicate huge crevasses suggesting impending landslides, which would definitely lead to significant loss of lives,” the high court bench remarked.
Following this, the high court not only ordered the suspension of mining but also summoned top state officials, including the director of mining, secretary of industrial development, and the district magistrate of Bageshwar, to ensure compliance with its orders.
In a subsequent hearing on January 10, the high court issued notices to 160 mine operators, observing that the responsibility of compensating affected villagers lay with the companies rather than the government. The court rejected the state’s offer to compensate the villagers from the public funds, siding with amicus curiae Dushyant Mainali, who argued that taxpayers’ money should not be used for damages caused by private businesses.
The high court also expressed concerns over the unauthorised presence of heavy machinery at mining sites despite a government order halting operation, as it scheduled the next hearing for February 14.
Dushyant Mainali, the amicus curiae in the case in the Uttarakhand HC, said: “We welcome the SC order. The interim orders passed by the HC was challenged by the miners directly before the top court although they were given opportunity to submit their version before the HC. Now they will have to participate in the proceedings pending before Uttarakhand HC.The issue of unregulated soapstone mining in Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar district has escalated into an environmental, geological and cultural crisis for the hill district. ”