The Meghalaya High Court appointed audit committee has found that authorities did not verify whether coal used by coke oven plants in South West Khasi Hills was legally sourced. The finding follows judicial monitoring of the coal sector since the National Green Tribunal banned rat hole mining in 2014 and is part of oversight by a committee led by retired Justice B P Katakey. The committee said its review followed inspections and regulatory record checks.

An inspection by the district administration on June one identified 10 coke oven plants, of which three were non operational for lack of a valid Consent to Operate. Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board records showed Consent to Establish had been granted for 15 plants; 10 held valid Consents to Operate while five had not applied for the mandatory approval. Plants were reported to source coal from outside Meghalaya, from within the state or from both.

The district administration had not verified whether coal brought into the state complied with the 2024 Standard Operating Procedure or whether state procured coal came from legal sources, prompting Justice Katakey to order a fresh field inquiry. The inquiry will verify existence of plants, statutory approvals and coal sources and will involve physical inspections across Meghalaya with district task forces. Inspections will examine procurement, record keeping and regulatory compliance.

The audit is part of a wider review of coal based industries aimed at preventing illegally mined coal entering supply chains and enforcing the 2024 SOP. The committee reported that demand notices have been issued running into tenths of a million Rs (mn) and that recovery and closure proceedings have been initiated in some cases, while checks have been ordered of coal sources and month wise production records from January one, 2026. Audits of ferro alloy plants and cement companies are under way and show cause notices have been issued to Star Cement Meghalaya Ltd and Star Cement Ltd as the High Court seeks detailed status reports from the state government.