What began as a visit to inspect a deadly accident site turned into a chilling exposé of rampant illegal coal mining across East Jaintia Hills, as BP Katakey, Head of the High Court–appointed Committee, narrated his first-hand account of the tragedy and what he described as a complete administrative blind spot. Katakey said he left for Thangskovillage early on the morning of February 6, immediately after reports of the illegal coal mine accident surfaced. “I reached around 11.45 in the morning and proceeded to the accident site by about 1 pm,” he said. What awaited him, however, was far more disturbing than the incident itself. “Not only at the accident site, but on both sides of the road leading to it, illegal coal mining activities were going on everywhere,” Katakey stated. Passing through villages such as Mopala and nearby habitations, he said the signs of mining were impossible to miss. “Everywhere — mining activities are going on.”
Accompanied by the Superintendent of Police and the Deputy Commissioner, Katakey stepped out of his vehicle and walked up to several illegal coal pits. On the way, he interacted with labourers working in the area. “What they disclosed is very serious,” he said. According to the workers, coal mining has been their only livelihood for the past 15 to 20 years. Expressing shock, Katakey pointed out the proximity of the illegal operations. “This place is hardly 10 kilometres from here. Everybody can see it — except the administrators,” he remarked, calling it a “very disturbing factor.” He immediately directed the district administration and police to seize materials and take action. On the human toll, Katakey said NDRF, SDRF and district officials informed him that 22 to 23 bodies had been recovered during his visit, later rising to 27. However, local residents and families of missing workers fear the number could be higher. “They said more people had gone inside the pit,” he added.
Katakey also sounded the alarm on a dangerous shift in mining practices. “Earlier, they used to send people inside to dig coal manually. Now they have started using dynamite so they can mine more coal in a shorter period,” he said, calling the trend “extremely dangerous.” Following his instructions, police recovered a large number of detonators from areas under Umleng Police Station, including Cement Bazaar and Rangad village — believed to be intended for mining blasts. Issuing a stern warning, Katakey said, “Even if you take it as 27 bodies, you cannot say you are protecting the lives of these innocent labourers.” He stressed that responsibility must be fixed and mine owners brought to book. “Going by the extent of illegal coal mining I have seen, and the new methods adopted, I am afraid such incidents may occur again,” Katakey cautioned, underscoring the urgent need for sustained and uncompromising action.