eng version of coal & human right

8/4/2019 Eng Version of Coal & Human Right

1/14

i

i

Workshop on Business and Human Rights

14-16

th

2011 Feb Bhuwaneshwar (odisha)

Coal Mining and Human RightsAlong the Damodar River Basin in Jharkhand

2011

UmeshNazirBIRSAMMCB6AbhilashaApart.11APuruliaRoad,Ranchi(Jharkhand)834001

Tel/Fax:+916512532035email :[email protected]

[Feb2011]


2/14

Coal Mining and Human Rights

2 | P a g e

AbstractThere is a great difference in the Jharkhand of the present and the past. This difference has been created by

the mining industry, especially the coal industry. The latter has not just changed the social, cultural,

economic and political structures which have existed here for centuries, but it has transformed Jharkhand

from a self-sufficient dissum(homeland) to a dependent state, which continues even after the formation of

a separate Jharkhand state. To achieve this, various despicable means have been employed, starting at

cultural and intellectual levels to physical exploitation and violence, which are still continuing. Jharkhandisocietyii believes in an economy of peace. Whereas from the very beginning, the coal industry has been

known to create social conflict and violence. This is seen not just in the mining history of Jharkhand, but in

the mining histories of countries all over the world. The conflict between the economies of Jharkhand and

the coal industry has changed everything in our state.To bring about this change, inhuman attacks were

made at all levels, including physical and mental attacks. And in this process, the coal industry, which had

given birth to capitalism and helped it to grow, has itself gobbled up the initial slogan of capitalism, which

was equality, liberty and fraternity. This kind of barbarian act was perhaps impossible in human society

before this. The coal industry has put restrictions on the right to life of the Jharkhandi society, not only on

the rights of human beings, but on the rights of all living and non-living things in it. There is no safe water

to drink, nor is there any clean air to breathe. There is an ongoing ashwamedhaiii campaign unleashed by

the mining industry to capture the rights nature has bestowed on living as well as non- living things. The

government, who is the custodian of the interests of the mining industry, will unleash all its machinery on

anyone who dares to challenge this campaign. If the people still do not keep silent, the coal industry has no

qualms about using criminals or any other kind of weapon against them. There is a genocide which is going

on unseen, but accepted by civilized people to get control over the coal, in which the Jharkhandis and

other similar societies are the victims. The big question is why does the government and companies want

coal at the cost of destroying a river like Damodar, which is the lifeline of Eastern India and an ecosystem

which has been in existence for thousands of years? There was a time when this coal was extracted for the

industrial revolution in England. After this, we were looted in the name of national development. Now,

after the formation of separate Jharkhand state, in spite of having Adivasi chief ministers and ministers, we

are being looted for whatever is remaining, highlighting the relevance of a discussion like this. We, who

believe in the economy of peace, are not just bearing the atrocities meted out to us, but we are offering an

active and interventionist resistance to it. Today, we have put Janata curfewsiv in our respective areas on

the mining companies, as well as the government machinery, and stopped them from entering. They have

not been able to start their operations in any of these areas except in one or two. There is daily struggle

going on and we are countering their strategies. As a result, the anti-nature and anti-human character of

the various national and international companies who have signed agreements with the government for coaland other extractive industries have come out into the open. Government has been forced to review their

earlier decisions regarding these companies. Along with this, the creation of a political environment based

on our ideology has also begun. As I am writing this abstract, news has come in that two contractors

working for the Abhijeet group are missing and that a search operation is being conducted by the

Superintendent of Police of Latehar district, Mr. Kuldip Dwivedi. We are fearful of a backlash on our

activists.

ii . in this paper, Jharkhandi society includes the indigenous Adivasis and Dalit and other subaltern classes.

If anybody belonging to these classes causes any damage to Jharkhandi Society through his/her actions &

ideology, he/She cant be considered to be a Jharkhandi.iii

. in ancient India, kings use to conduct Ashwamedha Yagya, in which a horse would be let loose outside

the limits of the kingdom, followed by kings army. The horse could go wherever it liked. If the horse came

back unchallenged, the king would be proclaimed emperor of all the lands traversed by the horse. If anyone

dared to stop the horse, he would lose everything, including his life.iv . villagers put up barricades at the entrance to their villages, where they would take turns and watch to

prevent outsiders from entering their area, including police, administration and mining company

repersentives.


3/14


3 | P a g e

Coal Mining and Human RightsAlong the Damodar River Basin in Jharkhand

A case study

1. BackgroundIn India and especially, Jharkhand, the history of both industrial mining of coal and that

of exploitation and oppression have always gone together, since the mode of production

associated with coal mining was not in tandem with the lifestyle and practices of the

Jharkhandi people. This exploitation and violence, which we today consider as human

rights violations still continue. Even after several phases of development, coal is still themost important source of energy. An International Energy Agency estimate says 40% of

the total energy needs in India are met by coal.In such a situation, the relevance of speaking on the human rights violations associated

with coal mining increases. This industry has destroyed the livelihoods, culture, freedom

to choose employment, health systems and economic, social and political systems of theJharkhandi people, especially the Adivasis and Dalits of Jharkhand. Those who raise

these questions are tagged as anti-nationals or anti-development activists. They are

harassed with false cases, physically assaulted or threatened by criminals. There is nodifference between public sector and private sector companies in this matter. Both use

constitutional and unconstitutional means, their only objective is to establish control over

the coal.

2. Damodar River Valley - An Introduction

2.1 Damodar river is the fourth most polluted river in the world. The contribution of thecoal industry in bringing the river to such a pitiable state is very huge. Today, the water

in that river can neither be used for human consumption, nor for the use of animals,

plants or trees. The situation is such that future generations will have to read about thisriver in books. Excavation for coal are going on both banks of the river.

2.2 The name of the river was not Damodar, it was Damu-daa, which in Santali language

means pure water.2.3 Damodar is one of the important rivers of Jharkhand. It was once called the sorrow

of Bengal. This river originates from Chandwa block in Latehar district and reachesBengal after passing through several districts in Jharkhand and joins the sea at the Bay ofBengal. This is the source of water for a large part of Eastern India, this river traverses a

distance of 540 km. from its origin. It passes through the districts of Latehar, Ranchi,

Hazaribagh, Chatra, Giridih, Dhanbad and Santhal Parganas of Jharkhand and Bankura,

Bardhman, Hoogly and Howrah in West Bengal in the course of its journey. 73.7% of theriver basin is in Jharkhand and 23.6% is in W. Bengal.


4/14


4 | P a g e

Distribution of Damodar Basin

Jharkhand

S.N. District Total Area(Square KM )

Area

Damodar

Basin

(Square KM )

District

wise

Percentage

Percentage

of Basin

1 Palamu 12677 736.84 5.81 3.15

2 Ranchi 18311 910.33 4.97 3.90

3 Hazaribagh 11152 6631.56 59.47 28.38

4 Giridih 6908 5376.81 77.83 23.01

5 Dhanbad 2996.80 2996.80 100 12.82

6 Santhal Pargana 14129 571.05 4.04 2.44

Total 17223.39 73.70

W. Bengal

S.N. Dist Total Area

(Square KM )

Area

DamodarBasin(Square KM )

District

wisePercentage

Percentage

of Basin

1 Purulia 6259 1383.28 22.10 5.92

2 Bankura 6881 1564.67 22.74 6.69

3 Bardman 7028 2113.61 30.07 9.04

4 Hugli 3145 359.87 11.44 1.54

5 Howrah 1474 726.16 49.29 3.11

Total 6147.59 26.30

Source : CCDRB Report 20012.4 Damodar river basin is a sub-basin of Ganga river basin. Its total area is 23370.98

sq.km. The geographical boundary of the basin lies between 220

15 to 24o

30N latitudeand 84o 30 to 88o 15 E. longitude. Geologically, this area was part of Gondwana region.

This is the lower part of Gondwana. Here you can find the processed rocks. Therefore,sedimentary rocks are found in this region. As a result, this region has abundant reserves

of important minerals like coal, mica, and kainite.

Damodar river basin is very important because of the coal mining industry. 46% of thetotal reserves of coal in India lie in this region. The estimated reserves of coal in the

region come to 71.86 billion tones. There are 311 coal mines, 182 non-coal mines, 78

urban centers and 82 industrial centers on the banks of Damodar river. All the industriesare coal-based industries. There are many companies engaged in coal mining in this

region, including the three units of the public sector giant Coal India namely, CCL,

BCCL, and ECL and many big private companies.

Reserve & Production of Coal in Damodar Basin

S.N. Coalfield Area(Square KM ) (BeliyanTun)

Productoin

(Miliyan

Tan)

Type of

Coal

1 Raniganj Colfeild 1550 22.0 26.0 Non-Coking


5/14


5 | P a g e

Coal

2 Jhria Colfeild 450 19.4 5.72 Prime

Coking Col

3 South Karanpura 194 5.72 5.72 Non-CokingCol

4 North Karnpura 1230 13.75 8.14 Non-CokingCol

5 East-west Bokaro 444 10.2 15.44 Medium

Coking Col

6 Ramgarh 98 0.97 2.9 Medium

SemiCoking Col

Source : IBM Report -20072.5In Jharkhand, coal deposits are found in other regions too, besides the Damodar river

basin. These are also parts of the Gondwana region. According to S.P. Mathur, v there are

rich deposits of coal in Aurenga, Huttar, Rajhara, Tatapani-Ramkola in the Koel-Karo

river basin and Chope-Itkhori, Giridih, Saharjuri, Kundit, Damodar, Kuraiya, Jayanti,Hura, Pachwada, Chuparbhita, Mahuagarhi, Brahmani and South Brahmani in the

Rajmahal hill ranges.

3. Coal Industry in Jharkhand

3.1 Coal has been one of the important sources of energy even from ancient times. There

is mention of this in the Vedic texts, too. From Copper age (3000 B.C.), our civilizationshave recognized its significance. One of the slokas in Yajurveda says, Oh my horse,

savour the taste of the earth and tell me where is the fire underneath. vi But till the time

of the industrial revolution in England, human race could not fully comprehend theunique and wonderful properties of coal.

3.2 After the Industrial Revolution, the unique properties and strengths of coal were madeknown to the world through the British. This was to run huge machines, which could not

be run with any other power. As a result, the British started seeing coal in a new light, it

became of paramount interest to them to capture control over this mineral. In order to

achieve this, they started a chapter in Indian history replete with exploitation,machinations, schemes and extreme brutality. They call this modernity, but those who

suffered from this onslaught termed it colonial exploitation.

3.1 British period

3.1.1The first industrial coal mining had documented history since the 11th of August,

1774 during the rule of Warren Hastings. The document says M/s.J. Samar & S.G. Hitleyhad applied for permission for coal mining at Sitarampur in the coalfields at Raniganj and

was granted. This was how coal mining first started along the Damodar river basin.

Mining also started in Raniganj and the neighbouring Ajay river basin soon after.

v S.P.Mathur, Coal mining in India: 1999vi D. Chandra, R.M.Singh & S.P.Singh, Textbook of Coal (Indian Context): 2000


6/14


6 | P a g e

3.1.2 The plan for commercial coal mining in India was started during the British perioditself and it is very much linked to colonial exploitation. There are records to show this,

the development of railways in India cannot be seen in separation from coal mining. In

1845, two railway companies were formed. They were the East India Railways and theGreat Indian Peninsular Railways. In 1872, Eastern India was introduced to railways for

the first time. Soon, the rail line was extended upto Jharia which shows the importance ofcoal. Railways and trains first came to Jharkhand in the form of goods trains, the coal

from Jharkhand was transported to England for industrial purposes by the same railwayline. Till 1872, there were 44 functioning coalmines in this region.

Production of Coal during British Period

Time Yearly Production (Million Tan)

1853-1899 1

1900-1919 6.12

1920-1941 18

1942-1945 29

1946-1947 30Source : www.coal.nic.in

According to available statistics, the production of coal increased in step with the demand

and this is proof of the fact that the coal from India and specially Jharkhand, played animportant role in the Industrial Revolution in England. Similarly, the increase in

production of coal during the World wars, shows that coal must have been used in the

war too.

3.1.3. The ownership of coal mines in Jharkhand was in the hands of outsiders. The

biggest proof to this is the palatial house of Tagore family at Rajhara colliery nearPalamu, which is in ruins now. This Tagore family is none other than the predecessors of

Kavi guru Rabindranath Tagore.vii

3.1.4 The take-over of land for mining and the highly hazardous working conditions in

the mines were against the life style of the Adivasis and Moolvasis of Jharkhand.

Therefore, very inhuman means were adopted to break them from their life style, which

can be better understood in the context of the methods deployed for colonial exploitation.Coal extraction was totally in the hands of private companies at that time. The miserable

work conditions, indeterminate hours of work, loss of traditional livelihood and inhuman

treatment all amounted to gross human rights violations.

3.1.5 In a coal field, only coal is valuable for the industry, nothing else is of any value.

There is no value for the workers nor is there any value for the land. That is the reasonwhy there is a raging underground fire in Jharia coal fields. This fire started during the

British period and the first information about this came out in 1911.

vii In 1828, Rajkumar Dwarikanath Tagore started an industrial coal mining company named Carr, Tagore

& Company.


7/14


7 | P a g e

3.2 Deception in the name of National Interest

3.2.1 Independence from British rule instilled new hope in the minds of the people, which

rose out of resistance to colonial exploitation. But the Jharkhandi people have paid a huge

price to keep this dream alive. The people from other parts of the country have failed tounderstand the sacrifices made by Jharkhandi people for national development. They

have relegated these people who have given sacrifices for national development to theslums of the big cities and towns.

3.2.2 Coal extraction was a very difficult process in those days because extraction was in

the hands of private individuals and the methods employed were very old. Therefore, this

work was considered hazardous. Some of the folk songs that are sung even today inMagadh and Bhojpur areas of Bihar, warn people not to go to work in the collieries. And

for this reason, before mechanization, most of the people who were working in this sector

were Jharkhandi Adivasis and Dalits. During that period, hundreds of deaths used to takeplace at the work sites and the number of workers deaths kept mounting amidst the hue

and cry about national interests.

Deaths in coal Mines in India

Time Accident Number of Died

1941-50 226 273

1951-60 223 295

1961-70 202 259

1971-80 187 264

Source : DGMS ReportThis statistics shows that the coal mine workers did not get much benefits from the so-

called national development, instead, the number of deaths kept rising each year.

3.3 Nationalisation of Coal Industry3.3.1 The nationalisation of coal, no doubt, made great improvements in the working

conditions in mines as well as in the facilities available to mine workers. But on the other

hand, this also threw the Adivasi and Dalit labourers who were the backbone of themining industry out of work. The main reason for this was, the mechanization which

followed in the wake of nationalization, required workers who had received technical

training. As a result, the few Adivasis and Dalits who were making a living from themining industry, were also retrenched. Thousands of people from the local communities

became jobless.

3.4 New Economic Policy and Coal Ministry

3.4.1The new economic reforms added new history not only to government policy, butalso to the coal industry. To complete the process of reforms, Coal Mines(Nationalisation) Amendment bill, 2000 was passed in the Parliament. The one-point

agenda of this bill was to increase the participation of private companies in coal mining.

3.4.2 How do the private companies look at the interests of the workers and their

responsibility towards communities? We know this very well. Fire started raging in

Jharia and the Chasnalla tragedy took place during the period of these private companies.


8/14


8 | P a g e

These accidents took place because the greed for coal made the companies ignore theirown mining plan and made them blind to the limits.

3.4.3 Economic reforms have reduced employment and created a sense of insecurityamong workers. The practice of using contract labourers in mining work has increased.

The government and pro-industry intellectuals say this will help to make the industryprofitable.

4. Coal Industry and Human Rights: the Present

4.1 The character of coal industry has completely changed now. It is dominated by

private and corporate industrial houses. This we can understand better from thedistribution of coal blocks in Jharkhand. There is the North Karanpura valley, which is

part of the Damodar river basin, where mining has not yet taken place. The government

has signed 36 MOUs with different companies for moining in this area. Out of the 36, 25are private companies. These private companies have been awarded 167.21 sq. km. of

land for mining. Whereas public sector companies have been given only 31.67 sq.km. of

land, which shows that this industry is going to go into private hands very soon.Allotted Coal Block for Pvt. companies in Karnpura N.

Date Company CoalBlock Area (Square KM )

7.01.02 Govindval Sahib

Ltd GVK powerLtd.

N. Tokisud 05.80

3.11.03 Tanughat VidyuthNigam Ltd.

Badam 04.50

11.10.04 NTPC Pakri Barwadih 62.50

13.05.05 Jaiswal Niko Ltd. Motra 01.50

26.05.05 AbhijitInfrastucture Pvt.

Ltd.

Brinda 08.55

26.05.05 Abhijit

Infrastrcture

Pvt.Ltd.

Sesai 05.00

26.05.05 AbhijitInfrastructure

Pvt.Ltd.

Meral

02.09.05 Carporate Ispat

Ltd.

Chitarpur 6.00

13.01.06 Jharkhand IspatPvt. Ltd.

N. Dhadu

13.01.06 Pawanjai Steel &

power Generation

N. Dhadu

13.01.06 Electro steel

casting Ltd.

N. Dhadu

13.01.06 Adhunik Alloy & N. Dhadu


9/14


9 | P a g e

Power Ltd.

13.01.06 Tenughat Vidyuth

Nigam Ltd.

Gondalpura 3.50

13.01.06 Damodar valley

Corporation

Gondalpura

13.01.06 Nilanchal Iron &power Generations

Dumari 6.00

13.01.06 Bajrang Ispat Pvt

Ltd

Dumari

25.04.06 Rungta mines Ltd Bundu 4.00

2.08.06 Gujrath miniral

development

corporation

Jaynagar 2.50

20.02.07 Essar power Chakla 5.06

25.07.06 Power finices

corporation

Keredari

6.11.07 Essar power Ltd Ashok karcatta

6.11.07 Bhushan power

and steel Ltd.

East patal

9.01.08 Archelor Mittal

India Ltd.

Seregada

9.01.08 GVK power Seregada

5.06.08 JSW Steel Ltd Rohini 25.00

5.06.08 Jay balaji

Industries Ltd.

Rohini

5.06.08 Bhushan Power &

steel Ltd.

Rohini

Routpara 8.00

South tokisud 5.80

Babupara 2.50

Allotted Coal Block for Public Sector in Karanpura N.

Public Sector Project Area (Hec.)

Central Coalfield Ltd. Magadh 1741

Central Coalfield Ltd. Amrapali 1426

Source : www.coal.nic.in

4.2 The past history of coal mining in Jharkhand has placed Jharkhandis in a veryprecarious situation, especially Dalits and Adivasis. They have been alienated from theirright to choose livelihoods, their culture, their water,land and forests and converted them

into cheap labour for the mines and introduced them to feudal exploitation and

oppression.

4.3 The exploitation and oppression that happened during British rule and the deception

experienced at the hands of the Independent state, has taught the Jharkhandis many


10/14


10 | P a g e

lessons, though we have taken a long time to learn these lessons. The first lesson was thateven after independence, it was only the Adivasis and Dalits from the mining areas who

were forced to make sacrifices. But, in spite of the sacrifices they had to make, there were

no significant changes in their lives. The changes happened to the capitalists associatedwith the mining industry. Their treasuries became bigger and bigger each year. Seeing

this, the people have built the understanding that we have the ownership rights overminerals. The Jharkhand Mines Area Co-ordination Committee was formed with this

understanding. When we started working, we realized that the tall claims aboutdevelopment were false. There is nothing in it for us except suffering and pain . Thus we

made up our minds, Land is looted, daughter has become servant, development is

yours. Dalits and Adivasis have no existence without land. They have no other optionexcept to make their daughters and daughters-in-law into servants and labourers. We also

learnt in the course of the struggles, that we could not fight such strong forces if we

struggled separately. Therefore, we have to come together. This idea was put into theslogan, Unite or die. Now we have understood that the impact of the mining industry is

not in a single dimension, but it is multi-dimensional. Therefore, in order to understand

its character, we have to bring openness and transparency into our movement and try tounderstand the other movements as well. We put this into a nutshell as Towards social

movement with deep thinking.

4.1 Livelihood

4.1.1 The mining industry makes tall promises of creating large number of jobs, but the

truth is different. Now, with mechanization, if the companies promise large number of

jobs, what can it be but a lie? Today, all over the world, jobs are getting reduced andworkers are being thrown out in the industrial sector. In such circumstances, how could

they possibly give jobs?

4.1.2 No company ever makes it clear what kind of jobs it will give to the displacedpeople. Looking at the present situation, they cannot give any jobs other than that of

contract workers. Even those, only a few can get.

4.1.3 To the remaining people who have been displaced from their traditional livelihood

means, there will be no option left but to become part of the large crowd of unemployed

searching for jobs in big cities. Those who cannot reach even there, will have to take upthe job of selling stolen coal on bicycles. You can meet thousands of such people, every

day on the roads of Jharkhand, pushing heavy loads of coal loaded on bicycles, with

dexterity.

4.2 Land Acquisition4.2.1 For the companies who have signed MOUS with the government, land acquisitionis a big problem. For that, they are trying to lure people through various offers and

promises. The companies are talking about rehabilitation, government has prepared a newpolicy for rehabilitation. But, till now, we have no example before us where it has been

put into practice.

4.2.2 Government has recently made a declaration saying any company who has made anagreement with the government, should acquire 70% of the land by buying directly from


11/14


11 | P a g e

the villagers. After that, the government will make available the remaining 30% of land.This declaration has given rise to an increase in the number of land agents. These are

none other than the descendants of the old feudal lords of the British era, they have

started giving land to the companies. This has opened a new road for companies.

Land gave by Land LordsCompany Acquired Land Land Lord Place

Abhijeet Group 350 Ac Bir Babu & Shanku

Nath Shadev

Chakala

Abhijeet Group 14 Ac Sukhlal Paswan Bainga

Niko- Jaiswal 4 Ac Landlord of

Ambajit

Ambajit

NTPC 200 Ac Sourabh NarayanSingh & Krishna

Sahu

Pakri-Barwadih

NTPC 7 Ac Jugra

NTPC 4 Ac UrubJVK 200 Ac Mahmood Miyan Devgarh

Source : Karanpura Bachao Sangharsh Samiti

4.2.3 In order to acquire land, N.T.P.C. is talking about social responsibility. A glaring

example of their social responsibility became visible to the public during the sports andgames event organized by N.T.P.C. for villagers in Garikela village. A 14-year old boy,

Ballu Mahato, son of Ramkishun Mahato was killed in a freak accident during the games.

He is a resident of Garikela village. A case has been registered against the player, Bheem

Ram. The sports equipment was supplied by N.T.P.C. After the accident, N.T.P.C.refused to take responsibility saying the event was organized by village youth.

4.3 Culture4.3.1 Mining industry is against the Jharkhandi cultural identity, whereas it supports the

feudal culture. This is the reason why it changed Dhanbad meaning a place abounding

with paddy to Dhanbad, meaning the abode of money. Mining industry has also namedmany chowks and mohallas with names of places and people who are synonymous with

feudal exploitation and oppression to the local people.

4.3.2 So much about chowks and mohallas. There is the coal ministry, a part of theCentral ministry, which enjoys the highest power in the country according to our

Constitution, CMPDI is a unit under the coal ministry, which manages the coal mines. It

has kept the names of Samudragupta, Chandragupta, Kunal, Braj, Kumar,

Shyam, and Ajathasatru for new coal mines. These are mostly the names of the

emperors of the Gupta dynasty who had ruled India thousands of years ago, in what iscalled the the Golden age in Indian history. This age became the Golden age, because ofthe surplus produced during that period. And this surplus could not have been produced

without the use of exploitative and oppressive machinery.

4.3.3 On one side, attempts are on to re-establish the heroes of the Golden age through

CMPDI, on the other side, the coal mining industry has been trying to finish off the

Jharkhandi and people-oriented histories right from the beginning, which is going on


12/14


12 | P a g e

even today. The North Karanpura valley, where the government has signed 36 MOUSwith companies for coal mining is the site of several megaliths, which show there was

human habitation in this region from pre-historical times. There are some cave paintings

in this area, which date back to the food-gathering period. According to S.A. Dange,before Aryans and Dravidians, there were people of the Mon-Khmer race living in India,

who had been driven off to the eastern parts of the country. Santalis and Mundas belongto the Mon-Khmer group. They were driven out of the Karanpura valley during the

British period.

4.3.4 They had been displaced from Karanpura area because they could not produce

enough from their lands to pay tax to the British government. The British handed overthis land to the zamindars who had come from outside. To work on the lands, the

zamindars brought bonded slaves who had become landless in the Maghi and Bhojpur

areas. They were freed from bonded labour only several decades after Independence.Now, after the MOUS have been signed, the prospect of becoming landless is looming

ahead of them once again. These are people belonging to the Dalit and backward classes

who are the lowest on the social ladder in the Indian social system.

4.4 False Cases

4.4.1 The N.T.P.C. site office at Barkagaon was destroyed by goondas set up by N.T.P.C.

itself. They did this to break the strong peoples movement active in the area againstmining and displacement. N.T.P.C. filed an F.I.R. in this matter on the 7th of November,

2006, in which 50 activists from the movement were named as accused along with 500

others who were not named. The then M.L.A. from the area, Mr. Loknath Mahato wasalso one of the accused. Deepak Das, the Co-ordinator of Karanpura Bachao Sangharsh

Samiti was falsely implicated in the case. He was not even present in Jharkhand on the

day the incident took place, he was in the train going to New Delhi to attend the World

Social Forum.

4.4.2 On the day of the Public Hearing organized for N.T.P.C., an F.I.R. (No.12/2007)

was filed at the Sadar police station against 19 activists of the Karanpura BachaoSangharsh Samiti, including Deepak Das. It was alleged that they broke into the District

Pollution Control Board office at Hazaribagh and broke the furniture and stole blankets

from there. It is a matter of surprise that whereas the Public Hearing was organized by theJharkhand State Pollution Control Board, the F.I.R. was lodged by N.T.P.C. officials at

the police station. Another point is, the Public Hearing was conducted during day time,

why would they need blankets at that time? Mr. Das was in jail for 65 days in connectionwith this case.

4.4.3 Niko-Jaiswal company had filed an F.I.R. (No.46/06) at Badkagaon police station,against 7 activists on charges of kidnapping. There is another complaint lodged in the

same police station (F.I.R. No. 161/2008) in which activists have been charged withbeating up the B.D.O. during the public function organised for distributing compensation

amounts to the villagers.

4.5Death


13/14


13 | P a g e

4.5.1At the work site of the thermal power plant being built by Abhijeet group at Chaklain Latehar district, a woman worker aged 20 died in a tractor accident while she was

coming to work. Abhijeet group gave a meager sum of Rs. 7000 as compensation to the

family of the deceased. If this is the way they carry out their responsibility to the workers,what social responsibility can we expect from them?

4.5.2On hearing about this death, villagers had assembled at the accident site and they

were going to block the road demanding compensation. But they were discouraged fromdoing so by some of Abhijeet groups well-wishers, saying that would antagonise the

company and eventually the deceased would not get any benefit from the company. There

have been many such incidents in the past.

4.6Death due to Negligence4.6.1 In the mine blast that occurred at the Nagda underground mines run by BCCL,which is one of the subsidiary units of the public sector giant, CIL, 50 mine workers lost

their lives. The mine workers had warned the management about the possibility of an

accident. But the management did not show any inclination to take action on this, insteadthey assured the workers that the safety measures taken were sufficient and up-to-date

and sent them back to work underground. An inquiry committee was set up after the

accident, but no action has been taken so far.

4.7Support from the Naxals4.7.1In Chitarpur coal block that has been allotted for Abhijeet group, a strong peoples

movement is going on for the last 7 years, against mining and displacement. There is notmuch chance that Abhijeet group can start their industry there. 3 years ago, Abhijeet

group got some naxalites(TPC) to issue threats to the leaders of the anti-displacement

movement. The activists were warned against organizing any protest against Abhijeet

group, otherwise they would be killed. So, the industrialists would go to any lengths,even ally with naxalites to start their industry.

5. Lessons Learnt

5.1 The mining companies have joined hands with the old feudal powers. As a result of

their alliance, feudal brutality and capitalist exploitation have come together and

oppression and exploitation have become more complex.

5.2 Government and all its resources are in the hands of the present ruling class. This is a

lesson we have learnt well in the course of our struggles. We have seen the four pillars ofdemocracy standing with the mining industry. People are slowly getting to realise that the

supposedly impartial face of the judiciary and media was also just a facade.

5.3 The first government of Jharkhand under Arjun Munda, immediately after taking

over, had signed agreements with 64 companies for starting mining and allied industrialprojects in the state. This was soon after the formation of Jharkhand as a separate state in

2000. But one of the key aspirations behind the struggles for a separate Jharkhand state

was the pain and suffering caused by mining and industrial development to the people.

We understand this pain very well, we also understand that the government and its entire


14/14


14 | P a g e

machinery are standing with our enemies, who have looted everything from us. And ouronly strength is that of the movement.

5.4 The issue cannot be solved through individual struggles. We need concerted societalmovements. The movements also need to learn from one anothers experiences and

enrich themselves. Without this, it will be impossible for any movement to continuestruggling.

6. Strategies

6.1 The movements bring in new lessons and requirements as times change, which lead to

changes in our strategies. But, normally, as soon as we get any new information aboutmining and allied industries, the activists at the Mines Monitoring Centre, start working

on it. The information comes from the community level as well as from the state and

national levels.

6.2 As soon as we get the information, we start contacting the people at the local level.

After the initial contact, we evaluate the situation and then start a campaign to createawareness about the issue.

6.3 The next phase is the movement. During the course of movement building, efforts are

made to learn to work in the new circumstances. Efforts are also made to let thecommunities realise the strength of organisation.

6.4 Last is the organization building phase. People learn the practical aspects ofmanaging the organisation slowly through experience.

7. Challenges

The present democratic system, which turns a blind eye towards its ownConstitution

Activities of Naxalites or other extremist groups believing in violence

Lack of networking at the national and international levels.

The spread of capitalist ideology

eng version of coal & human right

Documents