Illegal mining in Rajasthan has come under scrutiny after the National Green Tribunal constituted a four-member committee to investigate alleged unauthorised soil excavation in Sukad village of Pratapgarh district, where a forest ranger was killed while attempting to stop the activity.
The NGT’s Central Zone Bench in Bhopal took suo motu cognisance of the incident and directed the committee to visit Sukad and adjoining areas. It must verify the location, extent and depth of the excavation and submit a factual and action-taken report within six weeks. The Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board will coordinate the exercise.
The committee will include representatives of the Union environment ministry’s Jaipur regional office, the pollution control board, the district administration and the forest department. The tribunal has also sought responses from the state chief secretary, the principal secretary of the environment department, the Pratapgarh collector, the mining director, the forest department and the superintendent of police.
According to the tribunal order, forest ranger Pratap Singh Chundawat, 40, was posted at Chhoti Sadri and was carrying out enforcement duties when he and his team intercepted a dumper allegedly transporting illegally excavated soil at around 11.30 pm. While escorting the seized vehicle to the Range Office on a motorcycle, mining operators allegedly rammed another vehicle into him from behind. The impact dragged him nearly 50 metres, resulting in his death.
Police later seized a JCB machine and a dumper and detained several people, including JCB owner Harish Dhakad, according to the report. The NGT noted that the alleged extraction and transportation of soil and minor minerals without prior environmental clearance violated the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification, 2006.
The tribunal also flagged alleged regulatory failures by the mining department and the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board in checking mechanised and unscientific excavation. It said the activity could be causing ecological degradation, soil erosion and damage to topsoil. The committee has been asked to assess the environmental damage and determine compensation under the polluter pays principle.
The case has also raised questions about the safety and service protection available to officials involved in field enforcement. The bench directed the forest and mining departments to report within four weeks on action taken regarding Chundawat’s service conditions and payment of benefits following his death in service. “There is no security to the officials who are sacrificing their life for the enforcement of law,” the tribunal observed.
The NGT further noted indications of continuing illegal mining and insufficient action by the police and mining departments. The matter is listed for December 17, 2026, when the state authorities and other respondents are expected to respond to the tribunal’s directions.
