Jharkhand HC refuses to lift stay on allocation of sand ghats

Ranchi, Oct 9 (PTI) The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday declined to vacate the stay clamped on allocation of sand ghats by the state government.

A division bench of Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Rajesh Shankar was hearing a petition filed by the ‘Adivasi Buddhi Jeevi Manch’ for non-compliance of earlier orders of the court, granting powers to the gram sabha for allocation of natural resources under the Panchayat Extension of Schedule Areas (PESA) Act.

Advocate General Rajiv Ranjan informed the court that the rules to be framed under the PESA Act had been sent to 17 departments for their respective opinion.

The opinion of five departments was pending, and once those are received, the draft rules will be sent before the cabinet for approval, he said.

The court fixed the next date of hearing on October 30, when the state government has to inform the bench about implementation of PESA rules.

The ‘Adivasi Buddhi Jeevi Manch’ had filed a contempt petition for implementation of the PESA rules for proper division and auction of natural resources through scheduled area bodies.

The high court had on July 29, 2024, directed the state government to ensure implementation of the rules before initiating auction of sand ghats, and issuing certificates of mining for other minor minerals. PTI CORR NAM RBT