Date: 29 July 2011 Subject: Supreme Court suspends mining of iron ore in Bellary
The Hindu : News / National : Supreme Court suspends mining of iron ore in Bellary<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2305461.ece?homepage=true> New Delhi, July 29, 2011 Supreme Court suspends mining of iron ore in Bellary PTI T+<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2305461.ece?textsize=large&test=1> · T-<http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2305461.ece?textsize=small&test=2> [image: One of the mining sites in Bellary, Karnataka. The Supreme Court today suspended mining of iron ore in 10,868 hectares in the district. File Photo: G. R. Somashekar] One of the mining sites in Bellary, Karnataka. The Supreme Court today suspended mining of iron ore in 10,868 hectares in the district. File Photo: G. R. Somashekar The Supreme Court on Friday suspended with immediate effect the mining of iron ore in 10,868 hectares in Bellary district of Karnataka. “We are of the view that the mining of iron ore in Bellary be suspended immediately till further orders,” a special bench headed by Chief Justice S .H. Kapadia said. The court said the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) will, meanwhile, come out with an interim report on the requirement of the iron ore for the country’s steel industry. Secondly, the bench said, the MoEF will also spell out as to how much of iron ore is required for the domestic industry and how much needs to be imported. The court issued the directions accepting Attorney General G. E. Vahanvati’s submission that the MoEF will come out with the report in consultation with other ministries concerned — mines, steel and commerce. The bench passed the order after examining the latest report of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) which had said that illegal mining was going on not only in a rampant manner, but it was also causing irreversible environmental degradation. The court took environmental degradation into account for suspending the mining activities in Bellary. “In continuation of our earlier orders of April 29 and May 6, we are of the view that mining operations and transportation in an area ad-measuring approximately 10,868 hectares in Bellary district be immediately suspended till further orders,” the bench, also comprising Justices Aftab Alam and Swatanter Kumar, said. “……we are taking a holistic view of the matter. We have suspended these operations keeping in mind the precautionary principle which is the essence of Article 21 of the Constitution”, the bench said while ruling out suggestions that it should wait for the outcome of reports from other regions of the State. The court said it would also pass orders relating to two other districts of Tumkur and Chitradurga, also the hot-bed of illegal mining, after getting the environment impact assessment. “We further direct the CEC to submit a report on Environment Impact Assessment on account of mining in Tumkur and Chitradurga districts within a period of three weeks,” the bench said. The special bench, which stressed the need for working out a formula to engage only the public sector undertaking (PSU), for mining in Bellary region, asked Attorney General G. E. Vahanvati to come out with the suggestions in consultation with the concerned departments within a week. *Directive to MoEF* In the meantime, we direct the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) to submit an interim report indicating what is the requirement of the steel industry in India as far as iron ore is concerned. “Secondly, out of the total requirement of the steel industry, how much is met by the Bellary mines. Lastly, how much of the quantity of iron ore is domestically required and internationally exported? “The MoEF will obtain this requisite information from the Ministries of Mines, Steel and Commerce,” the bench said. It directed the Secretary, MoEF, to immediately convene a meeting of the Secretaries of the concerned Ministries and furnish a report within a week. During the hearing, the bench said the State government will also work out the measures for rehabilitation of the region and the parties involved will have to make the financial contribution as everyone has to contribute for its restoration. Further, the State government will have to fix the royalty on the export of iron ore on the basis of the international rate. * ‘Hidden economy’ * The court also made a remark that the Bellary issue is a reflection of the “hidden economy” being exported abroad. While passing the order, the bench cited the Haryana mining case where the apex court had banned mining in the area of Aravali till the damage is restored. The bench had on May 6 ordered forming of the joint team of representatives of the Forest Department and the Mines and Geology Department of the State government besides those of Karnataka Lokayukta and the court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC). -- -- Adv Kamayani Bali Mahabal +919820749204 skype-lawyercumactivist * * *The UID project i**s going to do almost exactly the same thing which the predecessors of Hitler did, else how is it that Germany always had the lists of Jewish names even prior to the arrival of the Nazis? The Nazis got these lists with the help of IBM which was in the 'census' business that included racial census that entailed not only count the Jews but also identifying them. At the United States Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC, there is an exhibit of an IBM Hollerith D-11 card sorting machine that was responsible for organising the census of 1933 that first identified the Jews.* * * *http://saynotoaadhaar.blogspot.com/* *http://aadhararticles.blogspot.com/* *http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_162987527061902&ap=1*< http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_162987527061902&ap=1> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en.
