Rampant mining blasts in East Singhbhum leave one dead

Jamshedpur: Local people are living in fear due to continuous blasting in stone mines in Oriya panchayat of Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district. Houses and shops in these villages along the border of West Bengal are shaking due to the blasting. Cracks have developed in the walls and locals fear for their lives and property.
On the other hand, due to the blasting of stone mines in Poda Diha panchayat, a large stone flew over Manoj Puran, a resident of Dungri Tola, and hit him in the chest, killing him on the spot. This incident has cause outrage among the villagers.
The guidelines issued by the government state that the mining should not cause any kind of trouble to the local people. At present, lease of stone mines in East Singhbhum district has been granted at several places. If the district administration investigates, many deficiencies can be found.
The lease holders are free to do whatever they want. As a result, villagers who have been living for decades in the place are being affected. On the one hand, the government claims that the development of the villagers is linked to the revenue from the lease of mineral resources.
Lease holders have to go through several processes in order to take up a lease. Lease is granted after approval of various departments. Even within the boundaries of the mining area, mining dust should not be allowed to settle on farmlands.
With the problem arising from the mining blast, Jamshedpur East MLA Saryu Rai said that this matter is not only of the mining department, but also of the district administration and pollution control board.