Dimapur Officials Ban Unpermitted Heavy Machinery Mining

Kohima: Dimapur Deputy Commissioner Tinojongshi Chang outlawed the use of heavy machinery for riverbed mining on Wednesday. This ban covers the extraction of sand, gravel, and boulders across the district. Machines now require valid permits to operate. The move stops environmental damage.

Indiscriminate mining ruins local ecosystems. It destroys biodiversity, contaminates water, and wrecks farming. Heavy gear also damages roads, bridges, culverts, railways, and irrigation channels. The order warns that unregulated work triggers riverbank erosion and landslides while draining groundwater reserves. These hazards threaten public safety and community livelihoods.

Operations must follow the Nagaland (Ownership and Transfer of Land and Its Resources) Act of 1990 and the Nagaland Minor Mineral Concession Rules of 2004. Violators face stiff penalties. The order states: "Mining operations carried out without valid permits or licences will be treated as illegal."

Authorities cited the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986, the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, and the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1974. Compliance teams include police, the Geology and Mining Department, and the Forest Department. Village and municipal councils will also monitor the sites. No unpermitted digging will be tolerated.