CORRESPONDENT
SHILLONG: What could not be achieved in over a decade has unfolded in a matter of days. In East Jaintia Hills, the district police under Superintendent of Police Pankaj Kumar Rasgania is witnessing one of its most aggressive crackdowns on the illegal coal trade in recent memory.
For 52 days, enforcement has moved silently yet decisively. The crackdown, which began during the tenure of Vikas Kumar, then SP of East Jaintia Hills, is now being carried forward with heightened intensity by the present SP.
In just five days under the intensified drive led by SP Rasgania, 25 FIRs have been registered, 1,322 metric tonnes of coal have been seized, and six arrests have been made. All the trucks were seized during his tenure, marking a sharp escalation in enforcement momentum and sending a clear message that impunity will no longer go unchecked. So far, 16 trucks have been seized across the district, with 12 trucks intercepted during the latest operation alone.
"On intervening night of February 20 and 21, 12 trucks laden with coal were seized by district police," East Jaintia Hills Superintendent of Police Pankaj Kumar Rasgania said.
The broader enforcement data further says a total of 94 FIRs have been registered so far in the last 52 days since January 1st. While, 17,322 metric tonnes of coal have been seized, 22 arrests have been made, and 25.5 kilograms of explosives have been recovered.
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