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Legal Review by
Edited by
Updated by
Published on
September 12, 2016
May 17, 2022
Edited on
September 12, 2016
The Uranium Corporation of India (UCI), which proposed to mine uranium deposits in the West Khasi Hills district, is funding a road to provide access to its KyellengPyndengsohiongMawthabah uranium mining project. The road from Wahkaji to Mawthabah was to be implemented by the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC). In early 2015, the state government asked KHADC to hand over the land to the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways for the construction of a twolane road project from Nongstoin to Mawthabha already sanctioned by the ministry. The KHADC delayed the process, citing a delay in UCI's confirmation. In April 2016, residents of 60 villages demanded that the KHADC issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for the project that will allow the construction of the road. Forming the Joint Action Committee on twolane road from Nongstoin to Mawthabah, the residents served a 15day ultimatum to grant the NOC, failing which it threatened to go to court. The committee criticised the KHADC for delaying a project that will benefit more than 80,000 people. But the KHADC remained adament and did not grant the NOC. On the other hand, antiuranium groups in the region opposed the project. While they welcomed the road, they were apprehensive that a twoway lane would enable ease of mining. Apparently, this was the reason why the KHADC had refused to grant an NOC. These groups wanted the KHADC to issue an NOC for only half the road and opposed the linking of the road with Mawthabah, which the UCI has been eyeing for mining. The committee members said they were ready to give their land for the construction of the road in lieu of rehabilitation and compensation package, but they would still not agree to turning Mawthabah a small village of only 10 households into a mining site. In June 2016, the Union government took it upon itself to probe the withholding of NOCs by the KHADC and the nonrelease of allotted funds by the state government. A former Union minister, in a letter to then Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, noted that the project is timebound, implying that the nonissuance of an NOC would divert the project to a different state. The lag in implementation resulted in the project work coming to a standstill. In July 2016, the Join Action Committee (JAC) served a sixday ultimatum to KHADC to issue an NOC, failing which the JAC would go on a hunger strike. Without any avail, in the same year, a public interest litigation (PIL) was filed requesting the high court to direct the KHADC to issue an NOC. In January 2021, the Meghalaya high court disposed of the PIL, stating that a mandatory direction has become redundant by "efflux of time" since, according to a letter dated August 20, 2019, by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways to the project general manager, the project had been approved and handed over to the State of Meghalaya. In January 2021, the state government, through the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, dropped the original 68kilometrelong twolane project, which was set to cost about INR 486 crore, and instead proposed a 30kilometrelong singlelane road, which is set to cost around INR 300 crore, thus finding a middle ground between antimining and proroad groups.
Demand for compensation
Demand for rehabilitation
Rural
Both
Forest and Non-Forest, Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land)
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
300
Type of investment:
Cost of Project
Year of Estimation
Page Number In Investment Document:
Has the Conflict Ended?
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Land Acquisition Laws, Constitutional Law, Other
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Controversial land acquisition by the government
Non-rehabilitation of displaced people
Non-payment of compensation/promised compensation
Legal Status:
In Court
Status of Case In Court
Disposed
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
High Court of Meghalaya
Case Number
PIL 11/2016
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Nature of Protest
Complaints/petitions/letters/memorandums to officials
Development of a network or collective
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Uranium Corporation of India
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Uranium Corporation of India Limited
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
United Democratic Party, Congress Party, Aam Aadmi Party, Hill State People's Democratic Party, Rangbah Shnongs of the villages in South West Khasi Hills
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
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