Goa illegal mining report will be submitted soon: Justice Shah The findings of the probe may shape the govt’s mining policies and help in plugging the existing loopholes
Ruchira Singh [email protected] Justice M.B. Shah, who is heading the commission that’s probing illegal mining cases across India, is set to submit its first report on Goa, the findings of which may shape the government’s mining policies. “The report on Goa will be submitted as early as possible,” the former Supreme Court judge said in a phone interview from Ahmedabad. “The work is in progress.” Justice Shah’s investigation will study all aspects of illegal mining, including the environmental impact and exports of iron ore, and is likely to play a crucial role in plugging loopholes in existing policies. “If justice Shah says government should ban exports and the government acts on it, all the mining companies will get affected. They will have to sell iron ore in the domestic market at a much lower price,” said Sanjay Jain, senior vice-president (research) at Motilal Oswal Securities Ltd. “I don’t expect the commission to make recommendations that are not sound. After all, this exercise has been undertaken so that the industry gets streamlined.” ========================================== WHAT IS ILLEGAL MINING? One of the main criteria used to define illegal mining is the absence of land rights, mining license, exploration or mineral transportation permit or of any document that could legitimate the on-going operations. Illegal mining can be operated in the surface or underground. http://mining.about.com/od/OperationsManagement/a/What-Is-Illegal-Mining.htm ========================================== In Goa, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to form the government after defeating the ruling Congress party in assembly elections that were held on 3 March. The BJP had used the illegal mining issue to attack the Congress party and had several times demanded that justice Shah’s report be made public. The Shah Commission was set up by the mines ministry in November 2010 after reports of illegal mining and environmental degradation were published in the media and non-governmental organizations filed petitions in courts. “The value of the 20.4 million tonnes illegally extracted and exported (iron ore) amounts to `4,500 crore at the rate of $50 per tonne, or `10,800 crore at the rate of $120 per tonne,” according to a petition filed by Goa Foundation in the Bombay high court last year against illegal mining in the state. Justice Shah said many representations have been made from different sections of the mining industry in Goa and Orissa and the commission is verifying them. “There are a number of representations,” he said. “We can’t rely on the representations. They have to be checked.” A senior official in the mines ministry, who declined to be named, said myriad representations from affected parties was slowing down the work of the commission. “Various stakeholders such as truckers’ associations and state governments have made representations,” the person in the mines ministry said. An official in justice Shah’s office said that the judge started his investigation in January 2011, about-one-and-a-half months after the commission was formed. That would make June the deadline month for the commission, given that he was asked to conclude the probe in 18 months. “It should be 18 months from the time work was started,” the official at the commission said. He didn’t want to be named. However, the mines ministry official said 18 May was the deadline for the commission’s reports to be received. “Justice Shah is yet to visit Jharkhand. But he has not asked for any extension of his deadline,” the official said. In an interim report, submitted in July, the commission recommended banning exports of iron ore, but the mines ministry did not act on it and had instead passed on the matter to the commerce ministry, an “action taken report” submitted to Parliament shows. “The commission in its interim report has stated that the main cause and incentive for illegal mining of iron and manganese ore is the huge profit possible due to exports,” the mines ministry said in the action taken report. “For this reason, the commission has recommended a total ban on export of iron ore and manganese ore.” “The ministry of mines is of the opinion that while demand for iron ore due to exports is a reality it cannot be held that exports are the reason for illegal mining, rather it is lack of governance at state government levels which has largely contributed to illegal mining,” the report said. “The ministry is of the view that a ban on export of iron ore may not be feasible.” India is the world’s third largest supplier of iron ore, exporting mainly to China that houses the world’s largest steel industry. Since the controversy started, the export market slowed down with China cutting its dependence on India. The interim report also recommended amendment of sections of Mineral Concession Rules, Indian Bureau of Mines guidelines and the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act to ensure boundary walls are demarcated clearly, inspection by regulators be held once a year, and miners engaged in illegal mining are barred from getting future leases. The Supreme Court, hearing a case against miners in Karnataka, had banned mining in the state in July and August last year, saying that mining should not resume until the environment is restored. Hearings in this case are currently on. In Karnataka’s mining districts of Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur districts, the economy has come to a standstill since mining was stopped and the steel industry is complaining of a shortage of iron ore. http://www.livemint.com/2012/03/06203529/Goa-illegal-mining-report-will.html?atype=tp --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Protect Goa's natural beauty Support Goa's first Tiger Reserve Sign the petition at: http://www.goanet.org/petition/petition.php ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
