Rat-Hole Mining
Method, Ecology, and Legal History
Rat-hole mining is an informal coal extraction technique prevalent in the Jaintia and Garo Hills of Meghalaya. It involves digging narrow, cylindrical tunnels (typically just wide enough for a person to squeeze through) down to coal seams, from which workers extract coal using hand tools. Two variants exist: side-cutting (horizontal cuts along hillsides) and box-cutting (vertical shafts leading to horizontal tunnels at the base). The practice is unscientific and unregulated, carried out without surveying, mapping, or structural support.
- The NGT banned rat-hole mining in Meghalaya in April 2014 on grounds of environmental damage (particularly severe acid mine drainage that has turned rivers like Lukha and Kopili orange-red and killed aquatic life) and grave risk to workers' lives.
- The Supreme Court upheld the NGT ban in July 2019 but permitted "scientific mining" if conducted under a valid mining lease and proper environmental clearances — which effectively continues to be unavailable to most operators in the area.
- Despite 250+ cases registered since March 2019, enforcement remains near-absent; the Supreme Court directed the Meghalaya government to deposit ₹100 crore as a penalty for failing to curb illegal mining.
- Meghalaya coal falls under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, which grants significant autonomous governance powers to tribal district councils — a complication for direct central enforcement.
● Tracked since February 06, 2026 · last seen March 10, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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