NGT BAN A BLESSING?

OUR STAFF CORRESPONDENT

SHILLONG, April 6: The tiol Green Tribul (NGT) ban on   unscientific ‘rat hole’ coal mining in the state has a different   blessing altogether, at least in West Khasi Hills and South West Khasi   Hills districts.

The men folks, who have long tread the deep black dungeons for higher  wages in the rich coal belts are back to the agricultural fields. Some  of them tilting their old agricultural fields and there are others who  are looking out for labour in private owned agricultural land.

“Yes we are back to agriculture to sustain our family,” stated a group  of people armed with agricultural equipments during an interaction with  The Sentinel in South West Khasi Hills while pointing at the NGT ban on  coal mining as one prime reason to take back the hoe.

They were pensive in describing the sudden NGT ban on coal mining that  has severely affected their livelihood. But they never regretted in  their journey back to the agriculture. “We may not earned the amount  that we earned in the coal fields but we simply wish that agriculture  harvest and wages that we earn should commensurate our labour,” said  one  of the elderly lot identified as Will Sitang.

In fact, the now jobless coal miners who have again taken up  agriculture are also scouting fields of people ahead of this year paddy  season. They scouted field belongs to private individuals who were even  forced to abandon cultivation due to lack of agricultural labourers in  the past.

Some of the families owning cultivable lands in South West Khasi Hills  said, “We are happy to see another fresh hope of life to the abandon  fields”, adding, “ If only the right intervention of the government  could sustain the forseen rejuvetion of agriculture in our district”.