'Dumped’ At Their Own Place? What Do The Malu Gaon Villagers Fear?

Home to the Tangsa people, Malu Gaon in Tinsukia district fears something grave—it may cease to exist due to the dumping of discards that have accumulated to a dangerous level. These dumps originate from an open-cast coal mining operation by NEC (Northeastern Coalfields), a subsidiary of Coal India Limited.

Today (March 29), the villagers of Malu Gaon stood firm in resisting the dumping of truckloads of debris, with a significant number of women and children participating in the protest. They want to save their village. Having inhabited the land for centuries, the Tangsa people of Malu Gaon fear losing their homeland.

What’s Happening at Malu Gaon?

Pratidin Time reached out to Napun Hakhun, the secretary of Malu Gaon Welfare Society, to understand the issue. Hakhun stated, “For the past 2–3 years, debris has been dumped in the vicinity of our village. It has already buried areca nut and tea gardens nurtured by our villagers. Now, the dumps have nearly reached our village. With the rainy season approaching, we foresee landslides that could turn our village into a dumping ground. We are terrified, as neither are we being compensated, nor is a new place being allocated to us.”

Mr. Hakhun told Pratidin Time that representatives of the villagers have approached Coal India, former Chief Minister and Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal (Dibrugarh MP), former Dibrugarh MP Rameswar Teli, and others.

The villagers have also met Margherita MLA Bhaskar Sharma, from the ruling BJP, but have failed to receive any constructive support.

This frustration was reflected in today’s protest, where Malu Gaon villagers attempted to stop the dumping of debris. The threat to Malu Gaon also poses risks to neighboring China Basti and Jharna Basti, Hakhun added.

Recently, villagers and representatives of the Tirap Autonomous Council Demand Committee (TACDC) met Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in Dibrugarh. “He told us that we will hear good news soon,” commented Pallav Shyam Wailung, secretary of TACDC.

He added that dumping should be halted until a concrete plan for Malu Gaon is announced by the Chief Minister.

Mr. Wailung, demanding a halt to open-cast coal mining, told Pratidin Time, “It has threatened the fragile ecology of the Patkai Hills. The British carried out underground mining in a scientific manner, which is now discontinued. Why is it not being revived?”

“We demand an immediate stop to illegal mining and coal trade. We also demand the immediate rehabilitation of Malu Gaon villagers and others facing imminent displacement,” Wailung added.

“We have seen how the tribal people of Ringrangtan village were displaced for the same reason and later forced to settle near the Arunachal border. This is how indigenous people suffer displacement in their own land without benefiting from the enormous coal business,” Wailung remarked.

Northeast Coalfields & Tikak OCP

The coal mining operation threatening Malu Gaon villagers is the Tikak OCP (Open Cast Project) under NEC, a subsidiary of Coal India Limited.

“There are two ongoing projects: one is the Tikak Extension OC, which is causing issues for Malu Gaon villagers, and the other is the Tikak West Expansion,” explained K. Mere, the general manager of NEC.

Mere informed Pratidin Time that the Tikak Extension OC will continue for approximately 20 more years. This project has a 23-year timeline, of which nearly three years have been completed. He also mentioned another large project, the Tirap OC, in the Makum coalfield.

Rehabilitation & Compensation

Mere stated that the relocation of Malu Gaon villagers to a safer place must be managed by the government. “There have been meetings involving stakeholders,” he said.

Regarding compensation for the villagers, Mere added, “Coal India Limited may provide compensation, but the amount needs to be discussed. If the compensation amount is exorbitantly high, Coal India may be unable to provide it, or the project may have to be halted.”

However, there arise some questions extending far down. Will some package of monetary relief ever compensate the prolong human sufferings including severe health issues due to pollution of all sort? Will some monetary relief make the people able to repair their deep rooted memories, cultural seeds rooted in the place that they have inhabited for centuries?

Open-Cast vs. Underground Mining

A former NEC official, speaking on condition of anonymity, explained to Pratidin Time how open-cast mining came into practice. “In 2008, there was an explosion at the Ledo coalfield. The DGMS (Director General of Mines Safety) instructed NEC to review the Tipong method of mining. However, all mining projects using this method were later closed, leading to the rise of open-cast mining.”

The Tipong method extracts coal by penetrating below the surface (underground), whereas open-cast mining involves excavating soil from above. “Open-cast mining poses greater ecological threats as it destroys vegetation, hills, and disrupts the ecological balance,” the former NEC official explained.

Regarding compensation, he noted that approximately ₹40 crore was allocated to the Tinsukia district administration two years ago for the welfare of affected people. “However, how that amount was utilized remains unknown. We have learned that nothing substantial has been done,” he remarked, adding that ecological restoration measures exist for open-cast mining.

Citing past instances, the former NEC official stated, “In 2016, NEC granted ₹65 crore for a wildlife management plan to meet the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) recommendations. NEC collaborated with Aaranyak (an environmental and wildlife NGO in Assam) to implement the plan for an open-cast mining project in the Makum coalfield. The Lekhapani project was withdrawn in 2019.”

What began over a century ago to fuel the colonial rulers' industries has now reached a critical juncture where land, people, and ecological balance must be considered to keep the wheel turning.

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