The Meghalaya government has shut down all illegal coke plants and only those ones with environmental clearance are being allowed to function in the state.
“As of now in the state of Meghalaya whichever coke plant that was set up illegally has been shut down and only the ones which have got the paperwork (including) environmental clearance are being allowed to function. Therefore, there is no question of any illegal coke plants functioning,” Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma told reporters at the sidelines of a government function.
“If there are any plants that try to come up ‘illegally’ that will also be closed,” the chief minister assured.
Stressing on the need to ensure there is a balance between the ecology and the economy, Sangma said, “That is the challenge and balance that we keep working towards and that is why there are guidelines and principles based on which certain industries can be set up.”
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The chief minister said that the government also wanted to see that more and better technology is used so that the environment aspects are reduced while “we also look at job creation and employment and ensure that the economy is sustained.”
“Therefore to balance between these two is challenging but as we move along with the help of technologies we will be able to achieve it,” he added.
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Further, Sangma admitted the importance of creating awareness among the citizens and said, “The awareness creation is an on-going process and we need to create awareness as much as possible.”
