CURRENT NEWS

NOVEMBER 2009

 

Orissa to look into charges of illegal mining by Vedanta

Bhubaneshwar, November 30, 2009:  With the Centre hinting at alleged illegal bauxite mining at Niyamagiri hills by Vedanta, the Orissa government has asked the Kalahandi district administration to verify the truth behind it. “We have asked the district collector of Kalahandi to verify the truth behind alleged illegal bauxite mining at Niyamgiri hills by Vedanta yesterday,” steel and mines secretary A K Dalwai said on Sunday. The verification report is expected by tomorrow, he said adding officials of Orissa Mining Corporation would also make an on-the spot enquiry. The state government’s action came in the wake of Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh’s statement on November 27 that a Central team would visit the site to verify allegations of violations of the terms of the in-principle approval under Forest Conservation Act, 1980 by the project proponent. The central team was expected to submit its report within a week, Dalwai said. When contacted, the state Steel and Mines Minister Raghunath Mohanty said that the government was against any illegal mining activities anywhere in the state. “Vedanta has not been given any permission to start mining at Niyamgiri,” he said.      The project was accorded an in-principle approval on December 11, 2005 under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. However, it was yet to get the final approval, which would be given only after fulfilment of stipulations contained in it, Ramesh had said. However, NGOs working among the tribals in Kalahandi told the environment ministry that Vedanta had already started mining activities on behalf of Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC).Though the state government had not made recommendation for mining in favour of Vedanta, it had sought permission from the mines ministry to allow OMC to explore for bauxite at Niyamgiri hills in order to feed the aluminium smelter of the MNC at Lanjigarh in the district. Official sources said the forest and environment ministry had in a letter on November 3 directed the state government to comply with the provisions of the Scheduled Tribe and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Rights) Act, 2006. It had also asked for submission of evidence supporting compliance of conditions before giving the final mining lease at Niyamgiri hills.

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com)

Ultra mega steel project scheme in works

New Delhi, November 30, 2009: The government plans to unveil an ultra mega steel project scheme on the lines of a similar initiative in the power sector to accelerate the creation of large steel capacity in the country to meet growing demand. According to the plan, the steel ministry along with the state governments will identify four to five locations close to iron ore mining sites for setting up ultra mega steel projects (UMSP). The minimum capacity of such projects, which would be offered to both public and private sector companies through competitive bidding route, will be 10 million tonne.   “The issue of ultra mega steel projects has already been discussed at the inter-ministerial group set up to accelerate development of steel projects across the country. We will take the views of all stakeholders before finalising a formal proposal for implementation,” said an official with the steel ministry, who asked not to be named.  An initial draft being considered by the steel ministry has suggested a model similar to ultra mega power project (UMPP) scheme. The proposal seeks the central government and state governments to create necessary infrastructure for mega steel projects, get basic clearances for the project and assure it of raw material supply in the form of coal and iron ore mining licences. Bids will then be invited and projects will be handed over to successful companies within a specified period of time. “It’s a great idea from the point of view of the industry. Through the bidding route, the government will be able to do away with unnecessary delays and hurdles that are attached to standalone greenfield steel projects. But before implementing it, the details need to be worked out on how to get regulatory approvals and how to value the project,” a Delhi-based steel analyst said, on condition of anonymity.  “The government will be able to make a difference only with the support of several concerned authorities,” Ispat Industries director (finance) Anil Surekha said.  The steel industry is currently grappling with severe land acquisition problems and raw material security issues, which need to be resolved to ensure the future growth of the industry. If the government manages to overcome these hurdles, ultra steel projects could be seen as an alternative, Mr Surekha said.  The government’s proposal aims at giving a fresh impetus to the creation of greenfield steel capacity. Fresh or greenfield expansion has become a problem because of issues such as land availability in Jharkhand, Orissa and Chhattisgarh. Tata Steel has put on hold its plans to set up a 12-million tonne per annum integrated steel plant in Jharkhand and a 6 million tonne unit in Orissa. The plans of AreclorMittal to set up massive steel plants in India, also look doubtful. India has a set a target of 120 million tonne of steel production by 2012, which will be largely met through brownfield expansion. India is the only country to register a growth in steel production this year. The demand for steel is also growing here in double digits, raising concerns that unless new capacity comes up fast, the country could become a dumping ground for steel.
Booster Dose

Steel ministry in cooperation with state governments would initially identify 4-5 locations closer to iron ore mining sites for development of ultra mega steel projects. The minimum capacity of UMSP would be 10 mt and it would be offered to both public and private sector companies under competitive bidding process. The proposal aims to give fresh impetus to creation of greenfield steel capacity. Steel industry is grappling with severe land acquisition problems and raw material security issues currently which need to be resolved to ensure the future growth of the industry

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com/)

No ‘in-principle’ nod for projects: MoEF

New Delhi, November 29, 2009: Following revelations that a private company working on a Orissa government bauxite mining project had been misusing the provisions of an ‘in-principle’ environmental approval to engage in illegal mining activity, the Environment Ministry has issued a show-cause notice to the state government and decided to discontinue the practice of awarding ‘in-principle’ approvals. Acting on complaints received from residents and NGOs in the area, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has written to the state government asking for an explanation as to how the violation of guidelines had been permitted.  The complaints were against Vedanta, a private mining company, which had been entrusted by the Orissa Mining Corporation to carry out bauxite mining in Kalahandi and Rayagada districts of Orissa. More than half of the 660 hectare project area fell in the Niyamgiri reserve forest area due to which concerns had been raised on the likely impact of the project on tribal communities.

(Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/No--in-principle--nod-for-projects--MoEF/547513)

Villagers to oppose any grant of mining lease in Balli

Margao, November 29, 2009: Villagers of Balli on Sunday unanimously resolved to oppose any grant of mining lease in the village. Villagers turned up in large numbers for the Sunday gram sabha which was convened specifically to discuss the permission sought by a mining company for a lease to carry out mining activities in the area. Agitated villagers vehemently protested against what they termed as the delay by the revenue officials from Quepem taluka to display the notice in the village panchayat office within the time frame. They demanded to how a major lapse could take place when the notice was displayed well after the expiry of the deadline and called for action against the erring officials. Conveying a message loud and clear to the government authorities that villagers will not tolerate any mining activity in the village, the villagers have resolved to continue the movement under the banner of Ghanv Bachao Samiti to take the agitation to the logical conclusion. A committee headed by Shanu Velip has been set up to pursue the matter. Some of the villagers called for a gherao of the Quepem Mamlatdar to demand explanation over the serious lapse of displaying the notice inviting suggestions and objections from the public to the mining lease. Some of the villagers are planning to convene a public meet in Balli shortly to oppose the mining lease but also to condemn the lapse from the government authorities. It is likely that neighbouring villages of Morpilla, Fatorpa and Barcem may also join the agitation as the mining companies have also sought mining lease in these villages as well.

(Source:http://oheraldo.in/pagedetails.asp?nid=30543&cid=26)

Remote sensing to be used to map actual mining areas
Bhubaneswar, November 27, 2009: To check illegal mining activities in the State, the State Government maintained that it is contemplating to prepare a map of the actual mining lease area by using remote sensing technology. “The Government has been seriously considering on taking help of remote sensing technology and other technologies to prepare a proper map of mining areas, particularly in Keonjhar district,” Steel and Mines Minister Raghunath Mohanty told the Assembly on Wednesday while replying to a question. Having a map with proper demarcation of different mining lease areas would be helpful in curbing illegal activities, the Minister said adding they would also take the help of other departments, Odisha Remote Sensing Application Centre (ORSAC) and its Central unit for preparing the map. Though the Government had leased out mining areas to different parties, it did not have a proper map to demarcate them. Taking benefit from the technical lacuna, a section of mines owners often overcross their jurisdiction leading to illegal mining, an official said. Meanwhile, the State Government has constituted an inter-organisational group comprising additional chief secretary and other senior officials, to coordinate with IIT, Kharagpur, other Central and State agencies for undertaking mapping activities.

(Source:http://www.dailypioneer.com/218656/Remote-sensing-to-be-used-to-map-actual-mining-areas.html)

Garbage dump deadline draws near, no alternative plan in sight

Pune, November 27, 2009: The city is staring at a major problem as the December 15 deadline for stopping garbage dumping in Uruli Devachi draws near with no alternative location in place. As a temporary measure, the civic administration is now busy exploring the possibility of using land in each of the 14 wards in the city for waste management. The government has summoned the civic officials on Friday to discuss the issue. “We are aware of the deadline and are working on a solution,” said Municipal Commissioner Mahesh Zagade. According to civic officials, the PMC has not been able to find a solution. The process of identifying landfill sites at four places in the district is on. The district administration suggested sites for dumping, but they belong to forest department. “It will be almost impossible to get an approval from the Union environment ministry for developing the forest land for dumping,” sources said. The fact that waste processing unit set up by Solid Waste to Electricity Company (Selco) at Ururli Devachi has remained a non-starter has added to the problems. “Around 1,000 tonnes per day is dumped at Uruli Devachi and the plan was to process it completely using two units of 500 tonnes each. At present, 300 tonnes are being processed at a private unit; its capacity will soon be increased to 500 tonnes. But the closure of Selco-run plant will delay the processing of the remaining 500 tonnes,” said Suresh Jagtap, Head of PMC solid waste department. “We have been able to identify 10 locations at the ward-level for garbage processing using bio-gas plants. Two plants have started functioning but there is opposition from citizens against biogas plants coming up in residential localities,” he said. Even the efforts to process waste in the PMC-owned gardens is facing opposition, Jagtap said. Meanwhile, the villagers of Uruli Devachi are in no mood to accept any more excuse by the civic body. “We called off the agitation in May after the civic body sought seven months to resolve the issue. However, the assurances have not been fulfilled,” said Dilip Mehta, member of Kachra Depot Hatao Sangharsha Samiti.

(Source:http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/garbage-dump-deadline-draws-near-no-alternative-plan-in-sight/546889/)

Cash incentives for fly ash disposal

Angul, November 26, 2009:  In order to dispose of over burdened ash in its ponds, Nalco has decided to give cash incentives to the lifters. At present Nalco is providing pond ash free of cost to the end-users. It has been decided to provide Rs 100 per cubic metre subjected to minimum lifting of 4000 cubic metres in a calendar month. The cost of loading and transportation shall have to be borne by the party, sources in the company said. Around 7,000 MT of fly ash is generated at Nalco’s 1200 MW Thermal Captive Power Plant at Angul everyday. This is mixed with water and disposed of the slurry through pipelines to the company’s ash ponds spread over 600 acres. These ponds are located five kilometers from National Highway-42 and well connected with an approachable road. The benefits of pond ash are many. It is good for land filling and road construction works. Use of pond ash in road construction helps in conserving precious soil and sand and reduces quantity of Portland cement used in concrete roads. According to an official dealing with ash matters of Nalco power plant here, the Nalco authorities are worried about the future when the two Nalco ash ponds would be filled to their capacity and need to be cleared of ash to contain more slur generated from the power plant. At present it has 20 meter high embankments and work is on to raise the height to 23 meters and subsequently the capacity.  Besides raising the height of the embankment, Nalco is in talks with Mahanadi Coalfield Limited authorities for a void mine at nearby Talcher Coalfield to evacuate its slurry. “MCL in principle has agreed to give a void mine -- Bharatpur for filling up ash’, said the source adding that further process to implement the decision was under way.

(Source:http://www.expressbuzz.com)

Gujarat says Centre should buy more coal mines abroad
Mumbai , November 26, 2009: GUJARAT government on Wednesday said the Centre needs to be aggressive in acquiring coal mines overseas to secure India’s energy needs, which would help domestic utilities meet their fuel requirement at a lower cost. “Imported coal will have a direct impact on increased cost of electricity generated by ultra-mega power projects (UMPPs) going forward. Bidders (of mega power projects) must have mines outside the country,” Gujarat energy minister Saurabhbhai Patel told reporters on the sidelines of a conference here. “The government needs to be more active in acquiring coal mines abroad, because we are already late by 5-10 years,” he added. The Centre also needs to work out a formula to control the cost of producing electricity from imported coal, he said. Fluctuating prices of raw material, especially coal imported by utilities like Tata Power for its Mundra UMPP was likely to make electricity costlier for end-consumers. “The percentage of variable cost has to come down. Such projects (like the Mundra UMPP) in the future should have a clause whereby we can control the variable cost,” he said.  India’s largest private power utility, Tata Power, is building a 4,000 mw UMPP in Gujarat, in which the State government has a share of 1,400 mw. Tata Power imports 12-million tonnes of coal per annum from two blocks in Indonesia, in which it has a 30% stake. Nearly half of the dry fuel requirement of the project will be procured from these mines. The minister called for separate distribution lines for supply of electricity to the agriculture sector in order to reduce transmission losses. “The state currently has surplus power of 700 MW, but there are no buyers as state utilities in India do not have resources to buy power,” Patel said. Gujarat plans to double its power generation capacity to 20,000 mw in the next three years, he said. “We currently have 10,000 mw of generation capacity. We want to double this in the next three years. We are also putting in a lot of money in setting up transmission lines.” He said that five lakh families in Gujarat had no lighting facilities and the state government was making arrangements to supply power to all in the next 12 months. Patel said Gujarat also planned to connect all 26 districts through a gas grid, with a target of reaching two lakh households.

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com/)

AP suspends all mining activities

Hyderabad, November 26, 2009: IN A major setback to the Obulapuram Mining Company owned by Karnataka tourism minister Gali Janardhan Reddy, the Andhra Pradesh government has ordered the suspension of all iron ore mining activities in the state. It has also banned the transportation of iron ore from OMC and five other mining companies operating in the Bellary forest reserve areas, to other states or ports.  Recently, the central-empowered committee appointed by the Supreme Court had stated that mining activities carried out by OMC were illegal and recommended that it be suspended until fresh boundaries of the mining leases were issued. Subsequently, chief minister K Rosaiah discussed the report of the central committee and that of the three-member committee appointed by the state government. A final decision was taken after consultations with legal experts.  Earlier, forest officials from Andhra had issued notices to OMC for irregularities after it received complaints of encroachment of reserve forest areas and illegal mining activities.  Janardhana Reddy, who had recently revolted against Karnataka chief minister BS Yedyurappa, has mining interests in Andhra and Karnataka. The opposition parties, including the Telugu Desam, had alleged that illegal mining by OMC had resulted in a loss of Rs 10,000 crore to the state.  It also alleged that OMC has pumped in illegal money into the business concerns of YS Jaganmohan Reddy, Kadapa MP, and son of former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy.

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com/)

Illegal mining goes on unabated
Dehradun, November 26, 2009: llegal mining in Gola and other local rivers continues, even when the Union Environment and Forests Ministry has given its approval for the resumption of mining in various rivers of the State. Forest officials have, however, maintained that it will take at least a fortnight to legally start the mining works. So traders, particularly labourers who are dependent on mining for a livelihood continue to indulge in illegal mining. Although it was not possible for transporters to sneak into the riverbed for mining, small-time traders have been successful in doing illegal mining. They can easily transport raw materials like wet sand and concrete on horse back, said forest officials. It may be recalled that the 10 years lease given for mining in different rivers, including Gola, Koshi, Dabaka, Sharada, to name a few, had ended this June. And due to certain queries sought by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, the lease period could not be extended. “Though the clearance has been given, mining work could be resumed only in December as we have to maintain all 10 gates of the river Gola to ensure smooth and hassle-free entry for the trucks and other vehicles. It is also vital for us to ensure proper monitoring of all these gates so that truckers could not pass without registration or paying the requisite fee,” said forest department sources. Besides, we will have to ensure proper registration of all the vehicles to be used in transportation of mining materials from the river, the sources added. Welcoming the decision, the traders and laborers however, said that delay on part of the Centre not only caused a huge financial loss to the State exchequer but also kept over 70,000 jobless for nearly two months. Normally, mining begins here from October and continues till June. Due to delay in extending the lease period, we lost nearly two months job as the mining could now begin only after a fortnight, lamented the laborers.  According to the forest sources the State Government receives around Rs 80 crore annually as revenue from mining in Gola alone.

(Source:http://www.dailypioneer.com/218349/Illegal-mining-goes-on-unabated.html)

Iron ore mining activity stopped

Anantapur, November 25, 2009: Mining and transport activity of iron ore of six mining companies in H Siddapuram, Obulapuram and Malpangudi villages in D Hirehal mandal, came to a halt as the Anantapur mines and geology assistant director, Mr S. Sairam Singh, reached the mining site and issued them government orders on Wednesday.  The State government iss-ued orders to halt mining and transport activity of six mining companies in D Hirehal mandal in accordance with the orders of the Centrally empowered committee on Tuesday. Mining and transport activity continued till afternoon as the government orders did not reach the companies. Mr Sairam Singh reached the mining site in the afternoon and met Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) managing director Srinivas Reddy, who argued with him and asked to show the government orders.Later Mr Sairam Singh spoke to the principal secretary, mines and geology, Mr Veerabhadraiah, over telephone and the latter directed Mr Singh to issue hand-written orders to the six mining companies. Mr. Singh wrote orders on a plain paper and served orders to the Obulapuram Mining Corporation companies, Anantapur Mining Corporation, Bellary Iron Ore Private Limited and Y Mahabaleshwarappa and Sons. Mr Singh mentioned in the order the immediate suspension of excavation and transport activities of the six mining companies. He also ordered the company owners to stop displacement of machinery and halted train transport. Speaking to this correspondent, Mr Sairam Singh said that it was not possible to keep a surveillance on the vast area to check illegal transport. He said that he had requested mines and geology officials of Kurnool, Kadapa and local police to check illegal transportation. He said that a letter would be written to the railway department to suspend transport activity from these mines. It is learnt that Rs 100 crores worth iron ore has been already dumped in Karnataka on Tuesday night.

(Source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/anantapur/iron-ore-mining-activity-stopped-705)

AP to obey CEC report partly

Hyderabad, November 25, 2009: The state government will partially implement the recommendations of the Central Empowered Committee on the controversial Obulapuram mines. The government, which suspended mining activities in six mines and transportation of mined materials, will not appoint any committee as suggested by the CEC for fresh survey. “We will wait for the Supreme Court’s directions on fresh survey,” the chief secretary, Mr P. Ramakanth Reddy, said. Asked about the future course of action of the state government, he said the department already issued orders suspending mining activities and will wait for SC orders on any other issue. The government moved swiftly on Wednesday after receiving the legal opinion and issued orders on the decision taken by the Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, at a meeting on Tuesday. Sources said the law department made it clear that the CEC could act on its own on any complaint it receives either through the SC or directly from individuals on matters concerning the environment. This has diluted OMC’s argument that the CEC could not act without any orders from the SC. The CEC in its order (1-1/CEC/2002) on June 20, 2002, notified the rules and procedure in which it said any person shall be at liberty to move the CEC.

(Source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/hyderabad/ap-obey-cec-report-partly-702)

No need to probe mining leases: CM

Visakhapatnam, November 25, 2009:  The government need not probe all the mining leases following cancellation of operations in six mines in Ananthapur district on Tuesday, said the Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah facing a volley of questions on the suspected loopholes in bauxite mining lease given to two multinational companies-Jindal and Anrak in Visakhapatnam district. “We have gold mines, bauxite and various types of mines and the government need not probe into all the lease agreements. Moreover we cannot go against the law or change the overall mining policy,” said Mr Rosaiah addressing his maiden press conference here on Wednesday. He said if a serious allegation was leveled against the lease agreement with the two MNCs, the government would definitely study the issue and take an appropriate action.  He said allegations against the Obulapuram mines were leveled since last two months and the government on its own handed over the case to the CBI. “We received the Central Empowerment Committee report and wasted no time in stalling the operations.” Even movement of milder material was stopped, Mr Rosaiah said and added Obulapuram was an isolated case, inquiry into total mining operations need not be taken up.  Replying to a question on Indrasagar project, Mr Rosaiah said, “Polavaram will continue irrespective of obstacles as it would benefit the entire State. Even the Centre has accorded national project status.”

(Source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/visakhapatnam/no-need-probe-mining-leases-cm-715)

AP govt halts mining activities in 6 areas

Bellary/Bangalore, November 25, 2009: Mining operations in six areas leased out to mining companies, including Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) owned by politically powerful Bellary Reddy brothers, came to a halt on Wednesday afternoon as the Andhra Pradesh Mines and Geology Department directed them to stop the activities with immediate effect. 

"As there is likely to be a delay in sending the government order to stop the mining, a letter has been given to the companies to stop mining activities and lifting of mined ore with immediate effect," Andhra Pradesh Mines and Geology Department Assistant Director Sairam Singh told Deccan Herald from Ananthpur on phone.  The AP government had decided to stop mining by OMC (68.5 hectares, 25.981 ha and 39.5 ha); Ananthapura Mining Company (6.5 ha); Y Mahabaleshwarappa Mines (20 ha) and Bellary Iron Ore Company (27 ha). The AP government's move follows the Central Empowerment Committee's recommendation to stop mining in controversial areas.
Minister's version
In Bangalore on Wednesday morning, OMC owner and Tourism Minister Janardhana Reddy said he had not received any show cause notice or orders from the AP government to stop the mining operations.  Reddy reiterated that the Supreme Court-appointed CEC had no jurisdiction to give such suggestions. "The CEC has not been asked by the SC to submit any report or affidavit," Reddy said. The CEC had not even visited his mining area, he added. Sources close to Reddy said that he is planning to focus on completing the first phase of the Rs 20,000-crore steel plant under the banner of Brahmani Industries Limited in Kadapa district of AP. The first phase is likely to be completed by October next year.

(Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/37966/ap-govt-halts-mining-activities.html)

Steel ministry: Centre should license mining
New Delhi, November 25, 2009: In a move that could fast track multimillion-dollar investments in the mineral sector, the Union steel ministry has proposed that licensing the mining of all strategic minerals—including iron and chrome ores, nickel, bauxite, and manganese—should be vested with the Centre instead of states. In separate letters to the Prime Minister and the mining ministry, steel minister Virbhadra Singh has opposed the new National Mineral Policy proposal to increase states’ powers to give various awards for mineral exploration & production. “We need a tighter policy framework for mining under the control of the central government, which is in a better position to decide how national resources like strategic minerals are to explored, produced and used,” steel secretary Atul Chaturvedi told FE. The policy change is necessary in the country’s long-term strategic interest, he said. Currently, states grant mining leases in concurrence with the Centre. The ministry’s move is prompted by the huge delays in awarding mining leases across the country, which many large domestic and foreign investors have found disconcerting. Public sector Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) had to wait for about 12 years to renew six out of ten mining leases for the Chiria mines in Jharkhand. It is yet to receive the remaining four leases and the delay has affected SAIL’s ambitious expansion plans. ArcelorMittal’s projects in Jharkhand and Orissa, and  South Korean major Posco’s Rs 53,000-crore projects in Orissa too have stumbled on litigation arising out of the mining policies of state governments. Global mining giants like BHP, Rio Tinto, Anglo American and De Beers have often complained about the uncertainties in India’s mining policies, even as they have evinced interest in prospecting & exploration in India. “There is need to codify the legal framework governing mining activities to bring greater transparency and predictability. Approvals have to be given in a time-bound manner,” said Chaturvedi. Currently, there are huge delays in decision-making by state governments, which follow arbitrary and disparate policies. The Union steel ministry has argued for security of tenure and rights of transferability of various awards like reconnaissance permits, prospecting licences and mining leases. It, however, said states’ right to royalty from their mineral resources would need to be protected. The steel ministry’s proposal is sure to infuriate mineral-rich states like Orissa, Karnataka, Bihar, West Bengal and Jharkhand. Of late, the states have been vying with one another to attract investments in the mining sector. At the same time, states with large deposits of iron ore and bauxite have made granting mining leases conditional upon applicants agreeing to set up steel plants in their respective states. “We have pointed out to the industry ministry that this trend, which amounts to introducing back-door licensing of steelmaking, needs to discouraged,” Chaturvedi said. Sources said mines minister BK Handique has convened a meeting of state mines ministers on December 5 for final discussions on the proposed amendments to the Mineral & Metals Development & Regulation Act, where the steel ministry’s proposal is also expected to be discussed. “States should have a greater say when it comes to giving forest and environmental clearances, and rehabilitation of populations affected by mining projects. However, the Centre would be in a much better position to take an optimal view on the end use of minerals,” said KPMG director Hiranyava Bhadra.

(Source:http://www.financialexpress.com/news/steel-ministry-centre-should-license-mining/545828/0)

Stop mining, panel tells A.P.
Hyderabad, November 25, 2009: Close on the heels of the report it submitted to the Supreme Court on November 19, the Central Empowered Committee(CEC) has advised the Andhra Pradesh government to stop iron ore mining in all the six mines in Anantapur district. In a letter to Chief Secretary P. Ramakanth Reddy on Monday, CEC member M. K. Jiwrajka said, “You are advised to stop mining operations, including transportation of already mined material, from all the six mines dealt with in the CEC’s report”. The letter drew attention to the fact that a copy of the report had been provided to the State government’s standing counsel, the Chief Secretary and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests.  It comes a day after Chief Minister K. Rosaiah stated on Sunday that the government had not received a copy of the CEC’s report. The Committee had recommended to the court that illegal mining be stopped in six mines in Obulapuram and H. Siddapuram villages of Anantapur district and observed that the “objectivity, fairness and impartiality which is expected from a State government is shockingly lacking here and does not inspire confidence”. Having since received the report, the Chief Minister held a meeting with Minister for Mines B. Srinivasa Reddy, Forest Minister P. Ramachandra Reddy and Advocate-General D.V. Sitarama Murthy and senior officials of the Law Department on Tuesday evening to discuss the future course of action. The Mines Minister later said the government would soon take a decision on the CEC’s report to stop mining activity in Anantapur district and collect penalty for the illegal mining done till date. The Advocate-General was asked to study the report of the three-member committee appointed by the State government before giving his legal opinion to the government.

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/25/stories/2009112555730900.htm)

Nalco to pay cash for fly ash disposal
Bhubaneswar, November 24, 2009: Around 7,000 million tonnes of fly ash is generated at Nalco’s 1,200-MW captive thermal power plant at Angul everyday. This is mixed with water and disposed of in slurry form through pipelines to the company’s ash ponds spread over 600 acres of land and located 5 km from National Highway-42 and well-connected with an approachable road. According to a company release, the pond ash is good for land filling and road construction works. Use of pond ash in road construction helps conserve precious soil and sand. It can also reduce quantity of Portland cement used in concrete roads. Nalco is not only providing pond ash free of cost to the end-users but has also decided to provide cash incentive of Rs 100 per cubic metre, subjected to a minimum lifting of 4,000 cubic metres in a calendar month. The cost of loading and transportation shall have to be borne by the party, the release said.

(Source:http://www.dailypioneer.com/217941/Nalco-to-pay-cash-for-fly-ash-disposal.html)

Coal hurdle to big projects
Calcutta, November 24, 2009: Two big-ticket Bengal projects involving a total investment of over Rs 40,000 crore are in trouble because they are likely to make an estimated 200 million tonnes of coal inaccessible. The Rs 22,000-crore aluminium smelter and power plant of Vedanta Resources near Ranigunj is slated to come up in an area now under Coal India’s leasehold, while Bhushan Steel is to build a plant near Asansol where the land has been notified as a “coal block”. At a meeting in Asansol today, additional district magistrate Biswajit Dutta discussed the problem with representatives of the two companies. “We will send our observations and recommendations to the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) within 10 days,” Dutta said. The Vedanta project, spread over 1,100 acres, comprises a 6.5-million-tonne aluminium refinery and 3,000MW power plant.  The company, listed on the London Stock Exchange, has 270 acres with it. But the rest of the land, which has to be acquired, is believed to be sitting on 51 million tonnes of coal.  Coal India has even started mining nearby and a shift of location appears the only way to rescue the Vedanta project. State officials appear more confident about keeping Delhi-based Bhushan’s 6-million-tonne steel plant where it is — Salanpur — with some minor realignment. It is the only hope because the company has ruled out relocation. For the realignment, the state has to convince Delhi to denotify the block, said to be having 150 million tonnes of coal. Nearly 85 per cent of the project’s 2,500 acres has been notified by the Centre as a coal block for which mining bids are being invited. A Bhushan official said: “We have spent considerable time on the project. Realignment is OK but we won’t go ahead if the project is shifted.” Vedanta officials were not available for comment. The meeting also discussed a proposed Videocon steel plant in nearby Jamuria.  Both Coal India and the Central Mine Planning & Design Institute said there was coal in this project area, too, but could not say when they planned to start mining. The area neither falls under Coal India nor has it been notified as a coal block. ADM Dutta said: “The Bhushan and Videocon projects can go ahead. We are recommending that to the WBIDC.” Coal India had earlier raised objections when coal-bearing land was offered for the airport city project in Andal, near Durgapur. The state then agreed to downsize the project area and take Coal India into confidence for future plans. Today’s meeting was part of a process to decide how land for big projects can be arranged with least damage to coal.

(Source:http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091125/jsp/bengal/story_11783809.jsp)

Stop mining activities of 6 firms: CEC
Bangalore, November 24, 2009: The Central Empowered Committee (CEC) has advised the Andhra Pradesh government to stop mining activities of six mining companies including Obulapuram Mining Company, owned by the Reddys in Bellary Reserve Forest area. The CEC, in its report submitted to the Supreme Court on November 19, has recommended the court suspend all mining leases till the demarcation of boundary of mining lease areas in the district was done.  Further, in a letter dated November 23 and signed by a member of the committee M K Jiwrajka, the CEC has asked the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh to ‘take immediate steps to stop the mining operations including transportation of already mined material, from all six mine leases dealt with in the CEC’s report.’  The OMC, owned by Tourism Minister Janardana Reddy and Health Minister Sriramulu, has three mining leases in the Bellary Reserved Forest area. Anantpura Mining Company, also owned by the Reddys, possesses a lease.  YM & Sons and BIOP each have one mining lease in the district. Going by the advice of the CEC, Andhra Pradesh government had to stop operation of all these mine leases. The CEC, constituted by the Supreme Court, filed its report with respect to a complaint filed by Tapal Ganesh, a mine owner in Bellary, before the Supreme Court.  The Andhra Pradesh government, following protests from Opposition parties, referred the alleged illegal mining activities of OMC to the CBI.

(Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/37780/stop-mining-activities-6-firms.html)

Coal miners oppose draft policy
Shollong, November 24, 2009: The East Jaintia Hills District Coal Owners’ and Miners Association (EJCOMA) has termed the State mining policy as ‘biased’ and ‘detrimental’ to the local population of Jaintia Hills district.Picking on the clauses of the 38-point policy and the feedback sought by the State Government from the various stakeholders, the EJCOMA functionaries told newsmen today that the Government exercise to seek opinion and its mode is a clear indication that the marginal coal mine owners and miners would be the targets. “This attempt to secure support of the people through the internet, the denial of the voice to the district councils and the traditional institutions is a blatant display of arrogance by the Government to serve the big coal tycoons, beside marginalizing those who have survived through the mines in all the past decades”, alleged EJCOMA spokesman PJ Bamon today. Taking cognizance of the six main clauses of the proposed Meghalaya mining policy Bamon said, “Our association welcomes the policy, but its imposition on the genuine stakeholders will be opposed at all cost”. He said that the proposed mining policy is an encroachment on the rights of the tribal people as laid down in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. EJCOMA general secretary HD Dkhar poohpoohed the Government’s talk of the various laws, the scientific and unscientific mining, joint venture, used, unused, under-use mines etc., and said these were superficial ideas all put in hastily to make it look like a well-formulated policy. The two office-bearers said, allowing heavy machinery to extract coal, backed by big money bags from outside the State would bring about a veritable disaster in the demography and economy of the tribal State. However, none of them would accept that the demography of Jaintia Hills, particularly in Khliehriat, had changed already because of their activities. They said, the big money bags from outside the State had been eyeing the coal mines since long and already entered the scene deviously, now they wanted to do it through the official route and that is why the Government came up with the mining policy.

(Source:http://www.sentinelassam.com/meghalaya/story.php?sec=2&subsec=8&id=27964&dtP=2009-11-25&ppr=1#27964)

State to suspend mining

Hyderabad, November 24, 2009: The state government on Tuesday decided to stop mining activity in the controversial Obulapuram iron ore mines and transportation of the mined ore. The decision would be a major blow to the controversial Karnataka minister, Mr Gali Janardhan Reddy, who runs the Obulapuram Mining Company. Further, the government decided to take up a fresh survey to demarcate the boundaries of the mines in the wake of the allegations that OMC has been carrying on illegal mining. For this, mining activity in all the six mines will be stopped. Of the six mines involved in the controversy, OMC owns four and controls one while the remaining one belongs to Mr Reddy’s rival firm, the Bellary Iron Ore Private limited. An emergency meeting held by the Chief Minister, Mr K. Rosaiah, on Tuesday evening also sought legal opinion over the government’s decisions. The forest minister, Mr P. Ramachandra Reddy, the mines minister, Mr B. Srinivasa Reddy, and other officials were present at the meeting. Though the state government initially decided to wait for a word from the Supreme Court, the Central Empowered Committee of SC goaded it to act by submitting a copy of its report to the state chief secretary, Mr P. Ramakanth Reddy advising him to act .Sources close to the CM said officials urged him to take action in view of the CEC recommendations and the indictment of OMC by the three-member committee of forest officials. The committee said in its 18-page report that OMC had violated forest rules while carrying out mining and suggested a comprehensive survey for demarcation of boundaries afresh, sources said. Sources said the CM too favoured action to project his clean image since he was upset over the TD dragging his name also into the controversy though he had ordered a CBI probe.

(Source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/hyderabad/state-suspend-mining-379)

Andhra halts iron mining
Hyderabad, November 24, 2009: In a major blow to Karnataka Tourism Minister G Janardhan Reddy, whose mining company is in the thick of a controversy, the Andhra Pradesh Government today ordered immediate halt to iron ore mining in the state. The move comes against the backdrop of allegations of illegal mining against Obulapuram Mining Corporation (OMC) owned by Reddy. The decision was taken at a high level meeting convened by Chief Minister K Rosaiah here to take stock of the developments in the wake of a report by the Supreme Court-appointed central empowered committee (CEC) concluding that OMC the was indulging in illegal mining in Anantapur district. The CEC had recommended that all mining activity be suspended until fresh boundaries of the mining leases were chalked out. The government also decided not to allow transportation of the iron ore stocks lying with the OMC, official sources said. Along with OMC, five other companies engaged in iron ore mining in AP-Karnataka border areas will be affected by the government’s decision.

(Source:http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20091125/nation.htm#25

Bureaucratic delay hits concession approvals

Bhubaneswar November 23, 2009: Due to delay at various levels of administration, as many as 9,211 applications for mineral concession (MC) are pending with the Orissa government for disposal by October 2009. This includes 1011 applications pending in the directorate of mines (DoM), 2488 in the steel and mines department and 5712 applications at the level of mining officers (MO), deputy director of mines (DDM) and collectors. Similarly the number of operational mines in the state is much below the number of leases granted. Out of 596 mining lease (ML) licenses given for an aggregate area of 966 square kilometres for major minerals, 376 leases are in operation. Out of 176 MLs granted for minor minerals like decorative and dimension stones over an area of 21 square kilometer, 88 mining leases are in operation. This has been brought out by the Mineral Development Vision for Orissa, submitted to the Orissa government by the Society of Geoscientists and Allied Technologists (SGAT), a body dedicated to the promotion of mineral development and environmental measures. While the state government mobilised about Rs 1380 crore as mining royalty, the outlay for the sector in the state budget for 2009-10 is only Rs 35 crore, which is 0.12 percent of the total budget outlay. The report has suggested for reassessment of the mineral resources in the state as per the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC), reassessment of reserves of iron ore at lower cut off level of 50 percent Fe content, deeper drilling of iron ore, chromite and manganese mines. Report said, since about Rs 35 crore will be required in the next 2-3 year for taking up exploration work, the directorate of geology (DoG) should prepare a shelf of projects for possible assistance or funding by the United Nations Development Programme and other world bodies and foreign organisations. Talking to the media on the Mineral Development Vision, B K Mohanty, advisor, SGAT said, the total area held under the leases for major minerals is about 0.64 percent of the state’s land area. It will increase to 1 percent in 2020, if all developmental programmes envisaged in the plan materialises. It will be possible to control the operations over 1 percent of the land area if adequate staff are deployed. The vision plan focuses on developmental needs of four minerals namely bauxite, chromite, coal and iron ore. Mohanty said, small bauxite deposits numbering more than 100 and having reserves of less than 5 million tonne should be leased out. Similarly, underground mining in Sukinda area should be taken up. A separate company may be formed by Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) for Talcher coal mines.  For checking pollution in iron ore mining areas, SGAT has suggested for formulation of regional environment management plans. On coal royalty, the report suggests that the state government should take up the issue of coal royalty with the Government of India (GoI) as the next revision is due from 1 August, 2010.The provision of exemption of royalty on coal consumed by workmen should be dispensed with. Mohanty said, virgin areas, areas for which intention of grant has been communicated, areas for which lease has been granted but not executed and surrendered areas are more vulnerable to illegal mining. In such cases where irregularities are noticed, he said, instead of canceling the lease, notice should be issued to the mines owners to rectify the violations. SGAT criticized the Orissa government for its move to survey the lease boundaries with the assistance of IIT, Kharagpur and ORSAC. It pointed out that these bodies do not have the expertise to survey lease boundaries at the field level and suggested that Survey of India (SoI), directorate of geology (DoG) and organisations like Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) may be roped in for the purpose.

(Source:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bureaucratic-delay-hits-concession-approvals/377271/)

Illegal mining a pan-Indian phenomenon: Geoscientists

Bhubaneswar, November 23, 2009: Presenting to the assembled members of the media the Mineral Development Vision for Odisha by the Society of Geoscientists and Allied Technologists (SGAT) its former president BK Mohanty made light of the illegal mining activities in the State by pointing out that it happens in all States in India and is not exclusive to Odisha as highlighted by the media. The vision encompasses many aspects of mining that includes administrative, legal, procedural, operational and even environment issues. It calls for reassessment of the reserves of mineral resources at lower cut off and deeper drilling, stepped up exploration activities, high resolution Aeromagnetic and Radiometric Survey, capacity building activities through creation of laboratories, training, skill up-gradation of those in service and filling up of vacant positions through recruitment of personnel. Inadequate policing, poor infrastructure, lax implementation of the existing laws, poor and fast deteriorating law and order situation are some of the issues which came up for special mention as important contributors to the illegal mining activities. Suggestions have been made to remove the procedural bottlenecks that delay permissions for prospecting and mining approvals including the public consultation processes. The document calls for higher budgetary allocation for explorative and administrative activities, a higher royalty structure for various minerals which will ensure more revenue to the State’s kitty and lower commission to Metals and Mineral Trading Corporation of the Government of India for exports. The imperative of reviving the now defunct Mineral Development Board has been highlighted as a solution to the lack of coordination among the various institutions and organisations involved in mineral related activities in the State. The document demands that degraded forest land should be made available for dumping of waste and Rehabilitation and Resettlement activities due to stepped up mining of minerals. The current president of SGAT RC Mohanty rued the non availability of reliable data with any of the agencies of the State. He was also quite emphatic that the current efforts of the State to carry out survey of the existing mines by the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur with the help of Odisha Remote Sensing Application Centre is not going to deliver the expected results as the real requirement is field survey and suggested that it should be done by an organisation like the Survey of India. He also said that while it is well known that larger size of mines is desirable to achieve economics of scale in operation and the need of the hour is consolidation or cluster mining approach Odisha is actually seeing more fragmentation of small lease areas into still smaller size. SGAT was established in 1980 as a non-profit making body of professionals and has now 670 life members from India and abroad. It has organised many National and International seminars covering all aspects of Mineral Development.

(Source:http://www.dailypioneer.com/217730/Illegal-mining-a-pan-Indian-phenomenon-Geoscientists.html)

Mining loss: Increase budgetary provision

Bhubneshwar, November 23, 2009 : The Society of Geoscientists and Allied Technologists (SGAT) maintained that meagre budgetary provisions for the Steel and Mines Department and inadequate inspecting and checking are among the reasons behind the uncontrollable increase in illegal mining and smuggling activities.Addressing mediapersons here today, SGAT president RC Mohanty and former director of mines BK Mohanty said that poor infrastructure, deteriorating law and order situation and police inaction also give scope for illegal mining. They maintained that non-maintenance of boundary pillars of leases and lack of inspection by the Mining and Forest officials allow illegal mining to go on unchecked. Besides, the officials of the Steel and Mines Department do not have power of confiscation and disposal of minerals raised illegally and vehicles, equipment used for this.  The budget provision for the Steel and Mines in the plan sector for 2009- 10 is Rs 3.79 crore, 0.11 per cent of the State’s plan outlay and Rs 32.17 crore for the non-plan sector, 0.14 per cent of the State’s non-plan budget. They observed that all the plants consuming minerals and ores in the State should be required to furnish returns indicating particulars of materials received, consumed, finished products despatched, destination of despatch and stock at the plant site. Besides, issue of trading licence and permission for storage should be subjected to strict surveillance. They observed that illegal mining and smuggling of minerals exist in all the states. Coal illegally extracted in Meghalaya is transported to Haryana and Punjab. The SGAT, however, maintained that if corrective measures are taken, the mining revenue is likely to touch Rs 3,000 crore around 2012-13. They said that revision in the rates of royalty on coal will be due from August 1, 2010. Stating that there is adequate justification for an increase in the rate of royalty on coal, the SGAT advised the Steel and Mines Department to prepare a paper justifying the increase in the royalty rate and press the Coal Ministry for consideration. The revised rates of royalty came into effect on August 13, 2009 after a lapse of 22 months. As a result of the delay in notification, the State Government has lost approximately Rs 1,500 crore.

(Source:http://www.expressbuzz.com)

Lignite mining too reserved for GMDC

Ahmedabad, November 23, 2009: After reserving the mining of limestone and bauxite for stateowned GMDC, the state government on Friday decided to reserve the lignite mines too for the PSU.  The latest move is expected to expedite underground coal gassification projects in JV with Reliance Industries and ONGC as well as other long-term supply contracts inked by GMDC.  The action, the government said, was to ensure sufficient quantity of lignite for the state PSUs generating power and SMEs. Thus, only GMDC or its joint venture would now be able to mine in lignite, manganese, limestone and bauxite, said a government resolution issued by the state’s Industries and Mines department. The mines in Gujarat are estimated to have about 2,700 million tonnes reserves of lignite.  Of the total reserves, mainly in Kutch, Bharuch, Surat and Bhavnagar, about 1,300 million tonnes reserves are mineable.  State PSUs like FMDC, GPCL and GIPCL signed MoUs with the state government in 2005, during the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors' Summit, to set up lignite-based power plants. Considering that power generation is being undertaken in partnership of these companies, the state decided to prepare guidelines for use of these mines. "In order to add value to lignite, we will allocate the mineral to SMEs on a long-term basis. We have given special emphasis for utilisation of lignite in power generation. In this regard, GMDC will have long-term contracts with the SMEs. This will create more jobs in the country," said Saurabh Patel, minister of state for industries and power. Mining lease for limestone will also be granted where ever limestone is available as overburden to the lignite. This will be in such a way that mining of lignite is not disturbed. The policy of reserving lignite of GMDC is based on the policy of central ministry of coal, which has reserved coal for central PSU Coal India Ltd.  The rights for disposal of waste after the mining of manganese is also given to GMDC. Manganese reserves are found in Shivrajpur of Panchmahal district and Pavi Jetpur of Vadodara district. Earlier in 2007, the state government reserved 1,153.44 lakh hectares for GMDC. The remaining areas will be granted to companies in JV with GMDC for producing value added products like manganese sulphate, manganese dioxide, ferro alloys or any products where substantial value addition is possible.  Shivrajpur has 16 million tonnes of waste dump of manganese ore. GMDC will have the sole rights for sale of this reserve and 80% of the sale price will be given to Gujarat Mineral Research Development for mineral survey and exploration. GMDC will set up JV for project that will undertake value addition of waste dump of Manganese. GMDC's stake in the JV will be 10-26%.

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com/)

CM has closed-door meeting on mining

Bangalore, November 22, 2009: CM Yeddyurappa is learnt to have held a closed-door meeting with the top officials of the Forest department with regard to illegal mining in Bellary.
He held the meeting in the wake of the Central Empowered Committee of the apex court recommending that all mining activities of Obulapuram mining company, owned by Tourism Minister Janardhana Reddy, should be stopped. The CM is learnt to have collected all facts in this regard during the meeting. The CM it is learnt to have asked top officials of the Forest department to come to Aranya Bhavan in Malleswaram in the morning along with files related to the illegal mining area. It is also learnt that Yeddyurappa had directed his security officers not to disclose about the meeting to anybody. Sources said he also discussed about Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde’s report on illegal mining and what stand the Government should take if it is proved that Obulapuram Mining Company has been engaged in illegal mining by altering the State boundary.

(Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/37415/cm-has-closed-door-meeting.html)

Massive protest against danger to temple, environment

Chikkanayakanahalli, November 22, 2009: A massive public protest has been scheduled on Monday against the illegal mining by Mysore Cements Company in the area surrounding a piligrimage place Teertha Ramaeshwara temple.

In a press note the dharmadarshi of the temple Prasanna Kumar said Teertha Rameshwara Swamy temple is a popular piligrimage centre and according to puranas Sri Rama himself installed the Shivalinga here. The river flows underground here and is considered pious.  The temple was first threatened by the Ammasandra Cement factory situated in the neighbouring taluk which utilises the limestone found here as its  primary raw material. Extensive mining for lime stone has made its impact on the temple. The last time, around 24 years ago, the company attempted to blast boulders near the temple using explosives, large crowd of devotees from all over the state arrived here and staged protest for sitting in dharna at the temple for 5 days. Following such massive protest the Cabinet also discussed the issue in the Assmebly and orders were issued banning mining around 2 km area of the temple.  A case is also in the court urging total ban of mining in this area. Now, again the Mysore Cements Company has once again posed danger to the temple and the environment by  using explosives in survey number 27 at Erakatte and survey number 48 at Doddarampur. The state-of-the-art technology used to vagin blast is causing tremours for a large area surrounding the temple and the heritage palace at nearby Hagalwadi, constructed by the Veerashaiva king Eri Madanayaka in 1478 AD.
Explosives godown
Added to this the company has the explosives godown very near to the human habitation, which poses danger to people. Mining in the reserve forest area for a long time has resulted in loss of green coverage to a great extent. The ground water resources found during mining has been illegally diverted to Ammasandra factory and extensive use has resulted in drying up of the water table here. Bore wells are not hitting   water even after digging thousands of feet. The mines dust has also destroyed greens affecting cattle feed.  The protesters are demanding that the company’s  licence should be cancelled. Various organisations and several people’s representatives are also supporting the protest.  A massive protest march will be taken from the Prasanna Rameshwar temple at 11 am and go through main street s and a memorandum will be submitted to the tahsildar.

(Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/37425/massive-protest-against-danger-temple.html)

No clearance for mining, hydel projects that destroy Western Ghat: Ramesh

Palakkad, November 21, 2009: The Union Minister of State for Environment and Forest Jairam Ramesh has said that the Western Ghat has to be made an ``ecologically sensitive zone’’ since it is as important as the ecological system of the Himalayas for the protection of environment and climate of the country.  Addressing media persons on the sidelines of the inauguration of the national seminar organized as part of the silver jubilee celebration of the Silent Valley National Park at Mundur near here on Saturday the Minister said that the ``Central government will not give sanction for mining and hydroelectric projects proposed by the State Governments of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Goa that will destroy the Western Ghat eco-system.’’ He said that the Karnataka Chief Minister had laid the foundation stone for 440 MW hydel project at Gundia without getting the environment clearance from the Central government. The project will destroy 1900 acres of forest and create many ecological problems in the area. Hence the Centre will not give sanction for the Gundia hydel project’’, the Minister asserted. He said that the Government will consider giving financial incentives to the States that protect the forest and bring more areas under forest cover. The 13th Finance Commission is examining this issue. Once their report is submitted in January 2010 the Central government will consider providing dividend to those States who take steps to protect the forest and environment. The States like Kerala had made such a request to the Centre, he said. The Minister said that a Japan-aided Rs.225 crore scheme to provide infrastructure facilities to the State Forest Departments and training to the forest staff will be implemented in the next five years. Ten States including Kerala will be provided grant for infrastructure and training to the Forest Department and its staff under the scheme. Though this amount is taken as a loan by the Central government the State will get financial assistance from it as grant, he said.  Answering a question on the demands of environmentalists that the newly declared 148 sq. kms. buffer zone of Silent Valley to be made part of the Park the Union Minister said that if the Kerala government put up such a proposal the Union government will consider it as it wanted full protection of the unique Silent Valley forests.

(Source:http://beta.thehindu.com/news/states/kerala/article52465.ece)

SteelMin against states alone deciding mining leases

New Delhi, November 21, 2009:The steel and mines ministries are locked in a bitter turf war on amending the existing Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation (MMDR) Act. The mines ministry has proposed giving states full powers to allocate mining leases by removing the clause that requires them to seek Centre’s prior approval to do so under the Draft MMDR Act, 1957. But the steel ministry has opposed the move saying it would jeopardise long-term interests of the steel industry. Currently the mines ministry’s prior approval is required before states can hand out mining leases. The ministry has, in Section 8 of the Draft MMDR Act, sought to “devolve full powers” to states. This would allow states to independently decide lease allocation. Steel minister Virbhadra Singh has written to his mines ministry counterpart, B K Handique, asking him to retain the procedure of seeking Centre’s prior approval for allocation of mining leases of “strategic minerals” — such as iron ore, chrome ore and manganese ore — to ensure their utilisation is “in the larger public interest.” 

Arguing that his ministry was squarely responsible for growth and development of the “user industry”, the steel minister has gone on to suggest it would be better if his ministry was “involved in the process of granting concessions for strategic minerals”. Pointing out that iron ore was the lifeline of the steel industry, Singh surprisingly suggested: “If (the) mines ministry is finding it difficult to regulate and manage the process of granting of prior approval of mineral concessions for major minerals, (the) steel ministry will be willing to accept taking over this function of grant of prior approval for mineral concessions for iron ore, chrome ore and manganese ore, if the procedure of prior approval is continued.” Singh also wrote that by doing away with the procedure of prior approval “the Central government may be charged with abdicating its constitutional responsibilities, besides disturbing the sensitive and delicate balance of Centre-state relationship in regulation of mineral resources”. The minister opposed the clause of premature termination of mining leases for major minerals by state, saying here too the provision of seeking the Centre’s prior approval be ensured. In his letter, Singh wrote that mineral resources are national assets and their allocation and utilisation be done treating the country as a “single economic space”. The minister also said there have been instances “of state governments being swayed by local parochial interests while allocating mineral concessions overlooking national interests.”

(Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/steelmin-against-states-alone-deciding-mining-leases/544373/0)

Court declines to bar sand quarrying

Chennai, November 21, 2009:  The Madras High Court has declined to restrain the authorities concerned from quarrying sand in Naiyadupakkam village in Kancheepuram district.  Disposing of a writ petition, the First Bench, comprising Chief Justice H.L. Gokhale and Justice N. Paul Vasanthakumar, said the Collector ought to directly monitor the removal of sand.

Flora and fauna

J. Jayakumar of Kilpauk, who claimed to hail from the village, had sought to end unjustified removal of sand from the banks of the Cheyyar, contending it would affect flora and fauna of the area, besides causing serious degradation of ecology and impacting water supply.  The Bench said it had seen the files of the Collector, wherein it noticed that the Geological Department had given its report permitting removal of sand. The village panchayat had also passed a resolution recording ‘no objection.’ This was known to the petitioner. There were certain conditions imposed by the Collector while permitting sand removal, one of which was that quarrying should be, in any event, not beyond the depth of 0.90 metres. The government pleader had submitted that the condition was being followed. The petitioner’s counsel submitted photographs, which showed that perhaps the excavation might be more than what was permitted. The government submitted that the removal of sand was being done only by the PWD and not by any private party. The Bench said it was necessary from the point of view of environment that the particular condition be observed strictly.  “We expect the Collector to take necessary steps in this regard.” The Bench said it would be open for the petitioner or the aggrieved party also to lodge complaint to the Collector in case in future he got information that excavation was more than what had been permitted.

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/21/stories/2009112161520800.htm)

Reddys’ mines flout rules, so freeze work: SC panel

Hyderabad, November 21, 2009: After successfully downsizing Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, the Reddy brothers of Bellary now have run into a problem. The Central Empowered Committee (Environment and Forests) of the Supreme Court has recommended that all mining activity in Obulapuram in Andhra Pradesh be suspended till an independent body fixes the boundaries of the mining area again. The panel slammed the Andhra Pradesh government for “trying to cover up illegal mining done by M/s Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) in the unalloted forest areas outside the approved mining leases.” The Committee in its report submitted on Friday concluded that by reshaping borders and boundaries, illegal mining had been done by OMC. Owned by mining baron and Karnataka Toursim Minister Gali Janardhana Reddy, OMC may not be allowed to resume mining going by the recommendations of the Central Empowered Committee.

(Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/reddys-mines-flout-rules-so-freeze-work-sc-panel/544423/0)

A.P. shockingly lacking in objectivity, says panel
New Delhi, November 21, 2009: The Central Empowered Committee of the Supreme Court has said in its report to the court that Andhra Pradesh had taken the stand that all the mining leases “are in a compact block, there is no unallotted forest area lying between these mining leases and that the Obulapuram Mining Co. is not involved in any illegal mining outside its mining areas.” Differing with the findings of the State, the CEC said the conclusion drawn by Andhra Pradesh was totally erroneous. The report said: “The objectivity, fairness and impartiality which is expected from a State government is shockingly lacking here and does not inspire confidence. It is imperative that the boundaries of the mining leases are determined and fixed by an independent agency and till then all the mining operations in the area remain suspended.” The CEC said the boundaries of the six mining leases should be demarcated by a team consisting of senior representatives of the Survey of India; Union Ministry of Environment and Forests; Andhra Pradesh Mines, Forest and Revenue Departments. The team should also demarcate and identify the area falling outside the approved mining leases and wherein illegal mining operations had been carried out. It said that “till demarcation of boundaries of leases is done, the mining activities, including the transportation of already mined material from all the six mining leases should remain suspended. For mining done outside the approved mining leases, the mining lease holder concerned should be imposed an exemplary cost equivalent to the normative market value of the iron ore extracted from the area outside his approved mining lease.”

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/21/stories/2009112161891500.htm)

Documentary on Goa rivers to vie for Vasudha Award at Iffi '09

Panaji, November 21, 2009: The 40th International Film Festival of India (Iffi) holds special significance for Nalini Elvino de Sousa. The event, which will be hosted a stone's throw away from her Campal production house, will provide her an opportunity to compete for the Vasudha Award with her documentary "Rivers of Goa". The 27-minute-long film was earlier aired on the international Portuguese language television channel RTPi in March this year. "It is one of the many documentaries my team and I have produced for "Contacto Goa" that looks at the fascinating trail of Portuguese legacy in Goa," says Nalini, who, incidentally, was born and bred in Portugal, but migrated to Goa in search of her roots.  Throwing more light on the film she says, "This environmental documentary essentially looks at the rivers of the state as the veins of its economy. Fishing and agriculture depend on the water that vends its way through the state, so do mining and tourism. This documentary underscores the importance of rivers in keeping the heart of Goa beating," she says.  Directed and anchored by Nalini, in collaboration with Jude Santos Fernandes, the documentary comprises interviews with environmentalists Claude Alvares, Nirmala Sawant and Rajendra Parrikar among others. It has been produced locally by Nalini's Lotus and Film TV Production. "When we initially began airing 'Contacto Goa' on RTPi, our documentaries were produced by a Mumbai-based production team. But, Rivers of Goa is our baby," she beams. The documentary, along with five others, will vie for the Vasudha Award in the environment segment of short films. 'Peace of Mind Guaranteed' by Nalini's Goan counterpart Rajendra Pednekar is also in the race. However, Nalini appears unfazed about the attention her documentary stands to receive at the Iffi. "I will be busy during Iffi, but there are many other projects that need my attention. For one, I want to begin collaborating with local TV channels and air documentaries made by my production house. Communicare is also on my priority list," she says.  Nalini is president of Communicare Cultural Centre, a Porvorim-based educational project. Communicare, which started off as a Portuguese language kindergarten, now aims at teaching popular foreign languages. "Currently, seven languages are being taught at Communicare-Portuguese, Spanish, Russian, Italian, Hindi, Konkani and Marathi. I plan to raise the number to 28 languages by October 2010," she says. "I myself love to learn new things. In fact, I am currently taking piano classes along with my school-going son. After filmmaking, music and reading are my passion," adds Nalini, who also owned a store dealing in Portuguese food, wines and souvenirs in Panaji. Although having come to Goa a few years back, Nalini feels as comfortable here as any other Goan would. "I am intrigued by this quaint state and the remnants of the Portuguese legacy it proudly boasts of. I intend to capture all of it on film simply because I would like it to last for an eternity," she says.

(Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

SC panel proposes ban on illegal mining by Reddys

New Delhi, November 21, 2009: A high-powered probe panel set up by the supreme court (SC) has recommended immediate ban on illegal mining on the Andhra-Karnataka border. The central empowered committee (CEC) was set up to probe allegations of massive violation of environment laws by owners of Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC), the powerful Reddy brothers of Bellary in Karnataka. Though Karnataka minister G Janardhana Reddy maintains there is no illegality in the mining, the CEC report indicts the Andhra Pradesh government, saying the state functionaries' effort was "to cover up illegal mining by OMC" in areas outside those approved in mining lease claims. The apex court's green bench will consider the committee's report next week. CEC is highly critical of the Andhra government's conclusion that OMC was not involved in any illegal mining in forest areas. "The government's conclusion suffers from serious defects and inconsistencies and is not at all in conformity with the approved mining leases".  The panel also takes to task the late YS Rajasekhara Reddy's government as it notes, "The objectivity, fairness and impartiality expected from a state government is shockingly lacking here and does not inspire confidence." "There are substantial differences and serious discrepancies in the mining lease boundaries determined and those fixed now by the state forest department," CEC says. CEC feels "without doubt, there existed unallotted forest area between three mining leases of OMC, Bellary Iron Ore Private Limited and YM Sons, wherein illegal mining has taken place". "All mining activity, including the transportation of already mined material from all the six mining leases should remain suspended till the demarcation of boundaries is done," CEC member MK Jiwrajka said. Just a day before, the Andhra Pradesh high court had issued an order permitting OMC to continue mining. CEC suggests that demarcation of mining boundaries be done in a time-bound manner by a team consisting of senior representatives of Survey of India, Union ministry of environment and forests and Andhra Pradesh mines, forest and revenue departments.  The apex court had ordered the CEC probe on a writ petition by Tapal Ganesh of Bellary who alleged illegality in mining by the Reddy brothers.

(Source:http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_sc-panel-proposes-ban-on-illegal-mining-by-reddys_1314407)

41 Mines faces closure in Sundargarh

Rourkela, November 19, 2009: The Sundargargh district officials recently ordered closure of 41 mines for lacking statutory clearance. The affected mines owners have protested the decision on the ground that hundreds of workers will be rendered jobless. Sources said as many as 16 iron-ore and manganese mines under the jurisdiction of Deputy Director of Mines (DDM), Koira in Bonai sub-division faced the music. Similarly, 25 limestone and dolomite mines under the DDM, Rourkela were closed down. Sources said the mining authorities followed four parameters to allow or close the mines. Koira DDM UC Jena said actions were taken against those who failed either of the four yardsticks and till the respective mine operators abide to laid down guidelines, the mines will remain inoperative. The closure move has not gone down well with the affected mines owners who are crying foul claiming that it is the mine workers who have been hit the most.

(Source:http://www.expressbuzz.com/)

No displacement of tribal families in Niyamgiri

Bhubneshwar, November 19, 2009:  The State Government today defended proposed mining at Niyamgiri hills in Kalahandi district saying that not a single tribal family would be displaced due to this project. In a written reply to a question from Hitesh Bagarti (BJP), Steel and Mines Minister Raghunath Mohanty told the House there is a proposal to give permission to the Stateowned Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC) for mining activities at Niyamgiri hills. The Minister said no Dangaria Kandha tribe lived at the proposed mining area of Lanjigarh located between Rayagada and Kalahandi districts. The mining project at Niyamgiri is aimed at supplying bauxite to the alumina refinery of Vedanta Aluminium Limited (VAL) at Lanjigarh. He maintained that steps are being taken for the welfare of the Dangaria and Kutia Kandha tribes living on periphery of the Niyamgiri hills. A special purpose vehicle (SPV) in the name of Lanjigarh Project Area Development Foundation (LPADF) was constituted with contribution of the State Government (25 per cent), OMC (26 per cent) and Sterlite Industries Limited (49 per cent) as per the apex court directive, he added. The Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) - Southern Division - is the chairman of the SPV which on its first meeting decided to take up projects worth Rs 17.70 crore on health, education, road communication and infrastructure development required for the uplift of Kutia Kandha and Dangaria Kandha tribes, he said. The projects included solar lighting, improvement of educational institutions for Dangaria Kandhas at Khambesi and Chatikana, giving pipe water supply to Ambadola, Kalyan Singhpur and Bisam Katak areas besides road communication and bridges for the betterment of the tribes. Steps taken through the SPV will help in improving social status as well as lifestyle of tribes, the Minister said.

(Source:http://www.expressbuzz.com/)

CBI investigation to cover mining in Karnataka too: Kharge

Bangalore, November 19, 2009:  The Karnataka operations of the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC), owned by Karnataka Tourism Minister Gali Janardhana Reddy, will also come under the ambit of the CBI inquiry requested by the Andhra Pradesh government into the company’s alleged irregularities, Union Minister for Labour and Employment and senior Congress leader M. Mallikarjun Kharge said here on Wednesday. He told presspersons that the terms of reference of the inquiry made it very clear that the investigation would take into account “all connected matters,” including the company’s activities in Karnataka’s Bellary district as well as Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. “We had been asking for an inquiry for years, and mining activities have created an atmosphere of anxiety among people. I am glad it has finally happened now,” he said.  Asked whether Mr. Reddy should quit following the institution of an inquiry, he said it was “left to the decision of the party.” Speaking earlier at a function, Mr. Kharge said a constitutional amendment was in the offing to free the cooperative sector from political interference. He suggested that the Karnataka State Co-operative Housing Board come up with a plan to build 15 lakh houses in the next five years for providing shelter to the homeless. Mr. Kharge said he and other Ministers from Karnataka recently met the Prime Minister and requested him to provide more houses in Karnataka under the Indira Awas Yojana, as many had lost their homes in floods. The Prime Minister agreed to their request, he added. Housing Co-operative Board chairman and former Minister G.T. Deve Gowda sought greater autonomy for housing societies so that they could function more meaningfully. Legal hurdles in land acquisition by cooperative societies and 33 per cent tax on their profits should be removed to make them more efficient.

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/19/stories/2009111962001300.htm)

Orissa suspends work in 128 mines

The Orissa government has ordered suspension of work in 59 more mines, taking the total number of mines served such notices this month to 128, an official said Wednesday.  The mines were served notices for alleged illegal mining in Orissa. 'All together, the number of mines served show cause notices by Wednesday is 128,' Steel and Mines Secretary Ashok Mohadeo Rao Dalwai told IANS. 'They have been asked to stop operation because they do not possess various statutory requirements they are supposed to have,' he said. The statutory requirements include mining licence, and environmental clearances from the state pollution control board. 'Of the 128 mines, 50 are iron ore and manganese ore mines. They have to obtain and produce those things (papers related to their clearances). If they get back with all the required papers, we will allow them to restart operations,' Dalwai said. Orissa has approximately 600 mines and over 2,400 people work in them. Orissa is one of the largest mineral-bearing states in India -- 16.92 percent of the mineral reserves of the country are estimated to be in the state. The state government started an investigation in July following allegations by politicians that some mines were operating without licences. Earlier this month, the government ordered suspension of work in 69 mines and suspension of licences of many traders of different ores after they failed to produce documents to show that their mining activities were legal. Dalwai said the number of traders whose licences have been placed under suspension are 482.

(Source:http://sify.com/finance/orissa-suspends-work-in-128-mines-news-default-jlsm4cjebch.html)

People shift from coal belt

Asansol, November 18, 2009: The Centre has sanctioned Rs 2,629 crore to relocate by 2020 about 3.5 lakh people from the subsidence-prone parts of the Asansol-Ranigunj-Durgapur coal belt. According to the Asansol-Durgapur Development Authority (Adda) estimates, about 8,050 acres will be needed to rehabilitate nearly 80,000, mostly rural, families. However, for once, arranging for land may not be a problem. Officials said the 8,000-odd acres need not be contiguous and the state government and Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL) together had the land to house the new “townships”. Adda, which is implementing the project with help from the Union coal ministry, will start identifying the land in December. Its chairman, Asansol MP Bansagopal Chowdhury, said: “The Centre has sanctioned Rs 2,629 crore for the project which will take about 10 years to complete.” “Coal India has identified 139 subsidence-prone zones. The ECL will provide us with its unused land and the rest will be taken from the state’s bank,” Chowdhury added.  According to the plan, house owners will get the market value of their property and a 1.5-cottah plot. “Instead of the land, they can opt for a 450sqft, two-room flat in a cluster of three-storey buildings. Those who neither take the land nor the flat will get the market value of the 1.5 cottah plot,” said Adda chief executive officer Sanjay Bansal. Those living on rent in the area for over 10 years will also be rehabilitated. They will get 300sqft flats. “All affected families will be paid Rs 10,000 as cost of shifting in addition to the equivalent of 500 days’ wages for day labourers,” an official said. At the going rate, the wage comes to about Rs 36,000. The CEO said it would finally turn out to be several small townships for which Adda would provide the infrastructure — roads, sewerage, playgrounds, schools, community and health centres. “We have drawn up the plan consulting villagers and Coal India. If needed, we may modify it.” Many villagers hailed the plan. Bablu Badyakar, 35, of Bangalpara in Durgapur said: “We had been living in fear all these years.” Flames and smoke often leap out of the ground now and houses develop cracks as vast stretches are hollow beneath because of mining. Studies have shown all these areas can cave in any day.

(Source:http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091119/jsp/bengal/story_11759228.jsp)

CBI probe into illegal mining welcomed

Bangalore, November 18, 2009: Union Minister for Labour Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday welcomed the decision of the Andhra Pradesh government to order a CBI enquiry into the alleged illegal mining in Bellary by the Tourism Minister Gali Janardhana Reddy owned Oblapuram Mining Company.

Talking to reporters here, Kharge said for a long time, the Congress party had been demanding a CBI probe into the illegal mining but now the Congress government in AP has taken the welcome step. Without referring to anyone, Kharge said the CBI probe will give the local residents of Bellary respite from the terror unleashed by the mining lords. He said a joint survey would be conducted by the two state governments, Geological Survey of India (GSI) and other related agencies.

(Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/36625/cbi-probe-illegal-mining-welcomed.html)

HC petition seeks re-survey of mining area

Bangalore, November 18, 2009: A petition has been filed in the High Court seeking mining re-survey at Khumti village to probe into Obulapuram Mining Company’s cross-border exploitation, following the report by Survey of India that the mining survey was incomplete.

The petitioner, D Narayana Reddy, on whose earlier petition the survey was ordered, has appealed for a re-survey of the area alleging that the forest officials and officers from the Indian Bureau of Mines had colluded with Minister for Tourism Janardhana Reddy who is the owner of Obulapuram Mining Company. The petitioner  said the DCF Muthaiah, Department of Mines and Geology In-charge Deputy Director Sikander Basha, Controller of Mines Official B P Sinha colluded with the respondent. He said the State government did not comply with the HC order to conduct the survey through an independent agency and sought appointment of a judicial officer or a team of officials from the Lokayukta to ensure that the State complies with the HC direction and order for re-survey. The division bench headed by CJ P D Dinakaran has adjourned the matter. 
Notice to Wakf Board
The HC issued notice to the State Minority Welfare Committee, Chief Administrative Officer, Wakf Board and others in connection with the sale of land belonging two dargahs. Karnataka Muslim Sangharsha Samithi had filed a petition against the illegal sale of land belonging to Bada Makhan at Annipura near Lalbagh, where two dargahs of sufi saints are housed, to Bhavarlal for Rs one crore. Samithi had submitted that the CoD, which probed into the issue, stated in its report that the Wakf Board had colluded with the certain people to sell the land. No action had been taken against the accused.

(Source:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/36685/hc-petition-seeks-re-survey.html)

Gauns calls upon CM to stop mining at Sarvona

Panjim, November 18, 2009: Mining may be the backbone of the Goan industry. “But will the Government cut corners to allow a mine on the bank of the flood-prone Bicholim river even after High Court order ruling out any mineral ore extraction in the area?” anti-mining activists and environmentalists are asking.   In a recent development, the High Court of Bombay at Goa dismissed a writ petition filed by M/s Zantye and Company Pvt Ltd challenging the land acquisition done by Tillari Irrigation Corporation (TLC) for the purpose of constructing a canal in the mining area. Award-winning teacher and prominent social activist Ramesh Gauns has written to the Chief Minister Digambar Kamat calling upon him not to allow the mining operation of TC/ML28/53 of M/s Zantye and Compnay Pvt Ltd at Sarvona, Bicholim. Gauns mentioned that the Zantye company had challenged the land acquisition done by TLC for the purpose of construction of a canal which passes the mining area covering around 38,000 square metres of leased area.  He contends further, “In view of the dismissal of the petition, the catchment area of the canal comes under purview of CADA (Command Area Development Authority), according to which no activity can be carried out in an area of one kilometre from the canal.”  Gauns has called upon the CM to uphold the judgement of the HC and stop the proposed mining activity by terminating the lease by applying Rule 28A of Mineral Concession Rules 1960 and Section 4A of Mine and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act 1957. The social activist adds the Act of 1957 was applicable because the Bicholim river was flood-prone and the operation of this mine would surely further aggravate flooding in the monsoon season.  The 2003 edition of Fish Curry and Rice, a book on Goa, its ecology and lifestyle by Goa Foundation, cites a report of a committee comprising representatives of PWD, Captain of Ports, Directorate of Mines and Industries and Agriculture Department.  The report is based on the detailed investigation into the flooding caused on June 13, 1981. The report which is quoted in the book states, “In the catchment area of the river lie some mines, where mining activity is being undertaken for the last 30 years or so.”  It states further, “Because of mining, developmental activity and deforestation occurring in the catchment area of the river, the soil mantle gets displaced, with the result that loose soil finds itself transported by the rain waters to the water courses because of the steepness of the bed slopes in the upper reaches of these water courses.”       

(Source:http://oheraldo.in/pagedetails.asp?nid=30119&cid=26)

Vedanta employees charged after India chimney collapse

November 17,  2009: Three officials at a subsidiary of the mining company Vedanta Resources have been arrested in India following the collapse of a chimney in one of its power stations which killed 41 people. The incident occurred in September at Vedanta's Bharat Aluminium Company (Balco) power plant in Chhattisgarh, central India, during heavy storms. After a two-month investigation, local police have arrested Balco's vice-president, who was also the plant's project manager, its associate general manager and a graduate trainee engineer. The three men have all been charged with "culpable homicide not amounting to murder". The chimney that collapsed was being constructed for Balco by China's Shandong Electric Power Construction Corp (Sepco) as part of a 1,200 megawatt power plant. Chinese executives and engineers from Sepco were also questioned after the incident but none has been arrested. However, the police insisted that the investigation is ongoing and more arrests could be made. A Balco spokesman said the company was "surprised" by the arrests because it had cooperated fully with the police inquiry. "We are still in the process of finding out what happened. The investigation has not been completed," he said. This is another embarrassment for Vedanta, which is listed on the FTSE 100. Another of its subsidiaries, Sesa Goa, is being investigated over allegations of fraud and Vedanta has also faced criticism over its plans to open a bauxite mine in a sacred area of Orissa, eastern India. A UK government agency recently ruled that Vedanta "did not respect the rights" of Orissa's indigenous people, "did not consider the impact of the construction of the mine on the [tribe's] rights" and "failed to put in place an adequate and timely consultation mechanism". Vedanta defended its environmental and human rights record, insisting its work has had a positive impact on the lives of 2.5 million villagers in India and Zambia. Vedanta plans an open-cast mine on Orissa's Niyamgiri mountain. Activists believe the mine will destroy the area's ecosystem and threaten the future of the 8,000-strong Dongria Kondh tribe, who depend on the hills for their crops, water and livelihood. The tribe believes the mountain and the surrounding forest to be the sacred home of their god Niyam Raja.

(Source:http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/nov/17/vedanta-inquiry-three-arrested)

How they struck gold in Orissa’s iron mines

Bhubaneswar, November 16, 2009:As more and more details are unearthed, a complex web of mining irregularities — mining even when the lease had expired, mining before the lease has been granted and mining in forest areas without necessary clearance from the authorities concerned — have added up to become the biggest ever scam in Orissa. Preliminary estimates based on official documents available with The Indian Express indicate that the scam involves least Rs 14,000 crore. With the active cocollusion of officials of the state Forest Department, Mines Department, Orissa Pollution Control Board and some politicians and bureaucrats, mining operators plundered more than 150 mines in Keonjhar, Sundargarh and Jajpur districts, flouting all existing rules. What has come to light so far:

The Key Players

The Vigilance Department has raided the offices and mining sites of S R Rungta Group's Rungta Mining and M Serajuddin so far. Several other companies are under the scanner too, but all say they mined ore as per the law. Also involved are officials of the state Mining Department and Forest Department who turned a blind eye to the overmining and violation of forest laws. Though the complicity of Chief Minister’s office is yet to be established, the Opposition BJP alleged that the scam trail leads to his office as any file relating to mines and minerals are routed through him.

(Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/how-they-struck-gold-in-orissas-iron-mines/541877/0)

No bowing to pressure on iron ore mining controversy: Rosaiah

Hyderabad, November 16, 2009: : Chief Minister K. Rosaiah on Sunday asserted that his government would not succumb to any kind of pressure in protecting the interests of the State in resolving the raging controversy over iron ore mining in the Obulapuram Mining Corporation (OMC) in Anantapur district. In a statement issued after a delegation of Opposition parties called on him, the Chief Minister said the government would act without any bias and there was no need for anyone to suspect the government’s sincerity in the issue as its track record spoke for itself.  He had conveyed this view to a delegation of TDP, CPI, CPI (M), Lok Satta and Forward Bloc leaders headed by Leader of the Opposition N. Chandrababu Naidu when it called on him at his residence.  Earlier, the Opposition leaders expressed their dissatisfaction over the Chief Minister’s response to their demand for cancelling the mining leases of Obulapuram Mining Company owned by Karnataka Tourism Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy. Mr. Rosaiah recalled that he had convened three meetings with Mines and Geology, Forest and Environment and Revenue Departments even before the Opposition parties submitted him a memorandum. The Government would study the issue in depth and act transparently as its avowed policy was to protect public property. He rebutted Mr. Chandrababu Naidu’s allegation that the State Government did not respond properly to their demand in the Obulapuram mining issue. He said the government would act according to the law and would take action only after an in-depth study of the whole issue, he told the TDP representatives at the hour-long meeting.  Meanwhile, sources said that the Chief Minister, who is caught in the crossfire of allegations hurled against each other by the TDP leaders and Congressmen owing allegiance to Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy on the Obulapuram controversy, is determined not to be swayed by accusations from any quarter.

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/16/stories/2009111653670600.htm)

All-party delegation wants OMC operations scrapped

Hyderabad, November 16, 2009: An all-party delegation led by TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday called on Chief Minister K. Rosaiah seeking cancellation of operations in the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) and other mines in D. Hirehal mandal of Anantapur district. Apart from Mr. Naidu, the delegation comprising CPI(M) State secretary B. V. Raghavulu, CPI State secretary K. Narayana and Lok Satta Party president N. Jayaprakash Narayan, demanded a survey by the Survey of India to fix the borders between two adjoining areas, villages and lease-holders and finalise encroachments, if any. The leaders wanted the files relating to sanction of lease, licences/permits issued to OMC to be placed before the Assembly Speaker so that all parties could access them. Mr. Naidu told Mr. Rosaiah that an inquiry committee with all-India service officers belonging to the related departments — mines, forests, vigilance, revenue, Survey of India, industries, income tax, customs and commercial tax — should be appointed.  They wanted the investigating agencies to track the real beneficiaries behind Red Gold Company, which was bestowed with a share by OMC. They demanded prosecution of all those who had violated the Forest Act and other statutes of both Central and State governments.

‘Review leases’

The delegation wanted review of mining leases in the State and introduction of competitive bidding. It urged the Centre to consider a policy change for nationalisation of mining and new policy of competitive bidding. Mr. Naidu later told reporters that the Chief Minister’s response to the plea for an inquiry was not proper. “We are not going to keep quiet till the lease of OMC is cancelled.” He pointed out that Mr. Rosaiah had told the delegation that he needed time to study the issue. “How much time will the government take to respond to the allegations,” he wondered. Mr. Narayana said the ball was pushed into the Chief Minister’s court. It was for him to initiate action. Mr. Raghavulu wanted a complete halt to exploitation of mineral resources. Mr. Narayana sought a CBI inquiry.

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/16/stories/2009111653971000.htm)

Discrepancies in information on mining leases given to Karnataka Minister
Hyderabad, November 15, 2009: A Central Empowered Committee (on Environment and Forests) of the Supreme Court has found certain “prima facie” discrepancies in the information furnished by Andhra Pradesh on the actual extent of the three mines given in lease to iron ore companies owned by Karnataka Tourism Minister Gali Janardhana Reddy. The boundaries of the mines shown in the Survey Report are prima facie different from the sketches on the approved mining leases, the committee said in a communication sent to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests on Friday. A copy of it is available with The Hindu. In 2001, Mr. Reddy’s family was given leases of three mines, measuring 25.98, 39.50 and 68.5 hectares at Obulapuram and H. Siddapuram villages in Anantapur district. Following the Telugu Desam Party’s allegations that Mr. Reddy’s firms had encroached on land beyond the leased area, the then Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy appointed a Survey Committee, which gave a clean chit to the companies. The Empowered Committee significantly concluded that “if the village boundary as drawn by the State-level Committee is taken to be correct, at least one mining lease overlaps into two other mining leases. In other words, the combined sketch map of mining leases does not tally with the individual mining lease sketches,” the letter said and sought specific observations from the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests. The official was also asked to submit copies of the show-cause notices issued by the Anantapur Divisional Forest Officer. (DFO Kallol Biswas on October 28 served notices on the Obulapuram Mining Company for suspending its mining licences and subsequently received threats in person). Further, the Empowered Committee wanted copies of the sketch map of the five mines prepared by the Forest Department on the basis of the village boundary as demarcated by the Survey Committee, besides the sketch map of the sanctioned mining leases. The five mining leases are a reference to the two given to the OMC, one to the Anantapur Mining Corporation, all owned by Mr. Reddy’s family, and the remaining two in the names of Bellary Iron Ore Co. Pvt. Ltd (BIOP) and Y. Mahabaleswarappa & Sons respectively.  The TDP has alleged that the Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka governments had surrendered to the ‘mining mafia’, in a reference to Mr. Janardhana Reddy, while loyalists of Congress MP Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy accused that party of dancing to the tunes of S.K. Modi, owner of BIOP. (The Central Empowered Committee was constituted under Section 3 of the Environment Protection Act on a direction from the Supreme Court in May 2002 in connection with two writ petitions to save India’s forests and wildlife.)

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/15/stories/2009111557230100.htm)

Orissa mine scam could be worth more than Rs 14k cr

Bhubneswar, November 14, 2009: While Orissa vigilance sleuths and mines department officials are scratching their heads trying to find out the extent and dimensions of the mining scam, official documents reveal that the magnitude of the scam could be anything over Rs 14000 crore. The Central Empowered Committee of the Supreme Court headed by former bureaucrat PV Jayakrishnan would soon start investigating the violation of forest laws following a petition by Orissa-based journalist Rabi Das. However, CEC chairman Jayakrishnan said the panel has not got the formal notification of the probe order as yet. "We will decide about the modalities of the probe and the dates after we see the notification," he told The Indian Express. But the fact is that the scam goes beyond violation of forest laws only. Evidence available with The Indian Express shows the real scam was mining in excess of the limits set by the authorities. This violated the existing environmental laws.

(Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Orissa-mine-scam-could-be-worth-more-than-Rs-14k-cr/541383/)

Assam asks oil companies to set up power utilities

Guwahati November 13, 2009:  With demand for power in Assam increasing steadily, Assam has asked the "cash rich" oil companies operating in the state to invest in power generation to help the state tide over an imminent power crisis. The growth in demand for power has even outstripped the growth in the state economy. At a time when the economy of Assam was growing at 7 to 8 per cent, the demand for power has been growing at 12 per cent. The power demand in Guwahati alone, which was just 90 Mw in 2004, is expected to touch 290 Mw in 2010. Speaking at a conference on "Energy Resources of North-East India," Assam's power minister Pradyut Bordoloi has asked the oil companies to help Assam arrest the power crisis by investing in power generation projects. "The cash rich oil companies should set aside some of their liquidity for small power generation projects," said Bordoloi. He asked Oil India Limited (OIL) to mull over the earlier proposal by the Assam's power department to set up a gas-based power project in the state in collaboration with Assam State Electricity Board. Highlighting on the need for environment-friendly power generation, Bordoloi said that the state government would "soon" form a Green Power Development Corporation, which would invest in new and renewable power generation projects in the state. He said that 2,890 remote villages in the state had been provided with solar lights. Further, Bordoloi urged Coal India Limited (CIL) to stop open cast mining at Ledo in Tinsukia district in Upper Assam as it was degrading environment by releasing coal bed methane in the atmosphere. "The coal bed methane is resulting in acid rain in the area. Though we have approached the CIL and requested it not to continue with open cast mining, it's still continuing," Bordoloi said. The conference was organised by Synergy for Energy, Challenges and Opportunities in North-East India (Secone), a common platform for energy sector companies in the North-East.

(Source:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/assam-asks-oil-companies-to-setpower-utilities/376230/)

Rules for industrial expansion to stay: Environment ministry

New Delhi,  November 13, 2009: Accepts panel report that self-certification is not enough and expansion impacts need scrutiny.  An amendment proposed in the Environment Impact Assessment rules and opposed staunchly by green groups will now be carried out only in a very diluted form, taking care of the concerns expressed by environmentalists. The committee appointed to look at the comments expressed on the proposed amendment had given a report which has been accepted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, sending a sigh of relief among environment groups. The main amendment proposed in the notification was that industry need not go for fresh approvals for any expansion of projects. But accepting the objections raised by environmentalists, the JM Mauskar committee had recommended no change on the matter, which the ministry has decided to maintain. The proposed amendment said: “Modernisation or expansion proposals without increase in pollution load and/or without any additional water and or land requirement are exempted from the provisions of this Notification: Provided that, a self certification, stating that the proposal shall not involve any additional pollution load, waste generation or water requirement, be submitted to the regulatory authority by the project proponent.” Another contentious proposal was related to expansion projects involving production enhancement by more than 50 per cent to have mandatory public consultation. This ruled out consultation for expansion that was less than 50 per cent. Civil society groups responding to the proposal had said that every one will try to show that it is less than 50 per cent and avoid the public consultation. Besides, if the product is hazardous, then even 10 per cent increase is dangerous. There are some products whose production may be in kilogrammes, but the pollution load they generate will be far more than that of a product that is produced in tonnes, said a comment incorporated in the Mauskar report . On the proposed amendment mentioned earlier, views were even stronger. One commentator said the draft notification takes a myopic view of the environmental and social impacts of modernisation and expansion projects. Any modernisation/expansion projects will necessarily entail increase in production, increase in transportation, increase in the pressure on the local infrastructure and local natural resources and increase in the pollution load during the construction phase. So, even if a modernisation/expansion project does not lead to an increase in the pollution load or water or land requirement within the factory premises during the operation phase, it will lead to an increase in environmental and social impact outside the premises. Another concern expressed was about self-certification and ensuring elimination of fraud. Said a comment included in the Mauskar report: ''Another problem with this proposed change is that though the Ministry is going to rely on a self-certification mechanism, it is silent on how it intends to deal with the issue of fraud. Also, given the weak capacities of the regulatory institutions, it will be more or less impossible to scrutinise and validate the self-certification.” Those who opposed the proposal also noted the term “expansion” was open to misuse by project proponents. “We know that in power plant projects, separate and new units are being installed in the guise of expansion and modernisation. By doing this, companies circumvent the provisions of the law, by simply passing all new projects on the same site as expansion and modernisation. These projects have a massive environmental impact and lead to tensions with local communities. This provision will defeat the very purpose of the EIA notification.” Said Kanchi Kohli of Kalpavriksh: “These were the main concern and have been addressed.” Most concerns of civil society have been addressed by the committee and it is a fine report, which balances the views and concerns of both civil society and industry, she said. The decision to maintain status quo could also be linked to the plans to have an independent environment authority says Kohli. But whatever be the case, the environment safety is protected for now, she said. But civil society groups are keeping their fingers crossed till the matter goes through the Prime Minister's Office and comes out in the form of a notification.

Centre for Science and Environment, commenting on the Ministry’s decision to withdraw the proposed amendments to the EIA notification 2006, said most of the key concerns have been addressed. Said senior researcher Sujit Kumar, who took part in the consultations organised by the ministry: “The decision to do away with plans for self-certification are welcome. But there are still areas of concern.” However, among the changes that have been approved in the existing rules are the exemption of many activities from a public hearing and the process of environment impact assessment, while some have passed on from Category A to B, thus moving out of the purview of the Union ministry of environment and requiring only the clearance of state governments. Coal mining projects of less than 150 hectares are also exempt from a public hearing. The proposed amendments accepted by the ministry also exempt dredging activity from public hearing if the dredged material ifs disposed in port limits. It also exempts construction projects from a public hearing.

(Source:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/rules-for-industrial-expansion-to-stay-environment-ministry/376315/)

Orissa govt in the dock over mining scam

Bhubaneswar, November 13, 2009: The multicrore rupee mining scam in Orissa, said to be one of India’s biggest fraud involving public property, threatens to snowball into a major controversy with renewed demands for a CBI probe by the Opposition ahead of the the month-long Assembly session scheduled to start from November 18.  In what appeared as a diversionary tactic, the state government on Thursday announced a package for mining-affected farmers. ‘‘The details of the package will be announced during the assembly session,’’ said Orissa finance minister P C Ghadei. Scores of local tribals have got crushed under trucks in the last few months as hundreds of trucks carrying ore head from Keonjhar to Paradip.  Sensing public anger in the backdrop of reports of precious mineral resources being looted with the tacit patronage of those in power, the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government recently reorganised a task force, headed by the Orissa chief secretary, to check ore smuggling.  ‘‘After examining the documents, we decided to order suspension of operation in 69 mines. Of these, 39 were found not having valid permission to continue mining, while 30 others were ordered closed for not submitting records,’’ mines director J R Patnaik told TOI.  The leases of all these mines are said to have ended long ago, but these continued to operate without government approval.  What seems to be worrying the government the BJP — notwithstanding its limited presence in the Assembly — making the issue public by attacking the government during the assembly session.

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com)

Mining officials expected to visit Obulapuram

Hyderabad, November 12, 2009:  The Andhra Pradesh government is actively contemplating deputing a team of senior officials of the Mines and Geology Department to probe allegations of mining lease violations against the Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) owned by Karnataka Tourism Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy. Mines and Geology Minister Balineni Srinivas Reddy hinted at deputing a team on Thursday to verify the charges and submit a report at the earliest. This will be the third team of officials to visit Obulapuram in the Bellary reserve forest area after separate teams of the Forest and Industries Departments, which are already touring Anantapur district. The OMC, which has been mired in controversy, recently was in the limelight yet again after the District Forest Officer (DFO), Kallol Biswas, questioned the alleged irregularities and issued show cause notices to it. Telugu Desam Party president N. Chandrababu Naidu demanded cancellation of the mining leases given to the company and seizure of all the records.

Team in Anantapur

The three-member study team deputed by the government arrived here on Wednesday for inspecting the mining sites and studying illegal mining activity, if any, in the Obulapuram iron ore mines.  The team was greeted by slogan-shouting youth of the Telugu Yuvatha who staged a dharna in front of the DFO’s office in the city raising slogans in support of cancellation of mining licences to the controversial companies. The team, headed by Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) S.D.L. Mishra and comprising Additional PCCFs Sharma and Omkar Singh, held discussions with the DFO. The officials verified the records of the mining companies.

(Source:http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/12/stories/2009111254300600.htm)

Task force to step up local vigil

Bhubneshwar, November 11, 2009: The State-level task force monitoring illegal mining decided to enhance enforcement at the district level. The existing State-level and district-level enforcement squads are too inadequate to meet the increasing demand for vigilance in view of the rampant illegal mining, largescale theft, smuggling and transpiration of minerals. In its second meeting, the task force stressed a coordinated action to prevent illegal mining and transportation of minerals. 

(Source:http://www.expressbuzz.com/)

OJS welcomes Apex Court's direction to CEC on illegal mining
November 11, 2009: Orissa Jana Sammilani (OJS), a civil society initiative, welcomed the Supreme Court’s direction to the Centrally Empowered Committee(CEC) to look into the violation of the Forest Act in illegal mining in Orissa and submit a report within six weeks.  OJS president Rabi Das, also editor of ‘Ama Rajdhani’, had moved a PIL before the Apex Court, drawing the attention of the court on the alleged state-sponsored illegal plundering of valuable minerals from forest area. Mr Das said the Apex Court’s direction would be a turning point in the ongoing controversy regarding large-scale illegal mining in the state. He said the state government had been insisting that the investigation by the Vigilance to a couple of specific cases was sufficient for the purpose, despite an increasing public outcry for a detailed and independent investigation into the issue.  A Division Bench of the Apex court, comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan, Justices S H Kapadia and Aftab Alam, on November six asked the CEC to probe and submit report to the court within 6 weeks. The petitioner alleged that illegal manipulation, illegal interpretation, violation of binding direction of the Centre under supervening and overriding Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 and the rules were going on. He further stated that since 2000 no renewal of mining licenses had been decided. Such renewals as per the law, required prior approval and clearance of the government of India in the Forest and Environment Department. The petitioner further contended that the Orissa government had been dishonestly relying upon on a redundant and ineffective provision of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1966 and had been continuously favouring hundreds of parties to carry out mining activities without any authority of law. It also illustrated that illegal mining operation had been facilitated by a twisted and erroneous interpretation of law.

(Source:http://www.indlawnews.com/Newsdisplay.aspx?be097a16-cd49-45db-97f9-ee377443deef)

Nod for Niyamgiri mines likely soon

Mumbai November 11, 2009:  The project will supply bauxite to Vedanta’s alumina refinery in Kalahandi. State-owned Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC) is likely to get final approval from the Union ministry of environment and forests (MOEF) this month for the much-discussed Niyamgiri hill mining project near Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district for supplying bauxite to the alumina refinery, close by, of Vedanta Aluminium Ltd. This is sought to be done through a joint venture company, South West Orissa Bauxite Mining Pvt Ltd, a 74:26 holding between Sterlite Industries (SIIL) and OMC. The company has completed all formalities required. The Supreme Court had already cleared the project 18 months earlier, following affidavits filed by SIIL, OMC and the Orissa government on the rehabilitation package. OMC has been following the matter with the MOEF and they are expecting approval by the end of November, said Mukesh Kumar, Chief Operating Officer of Vedanta Aluminium (VAL). After that, four to five months will be required for preliminary preparations for actual commencement of bauxite mining and another two to three months for commercial production. In all, the bauxite mining may commence in eight to nine months from now, Kumar said. The JV was formed after signing of a modified JV agreement between SIIL and OMC in February this year, paving the way for the start of bauxite mining in the Niyamgiri hills. The purpose of the JV was to sort out the issue of raising Bauxite for VAL Alumina Refinery at lanjigarh where VAL has already spent about Rs 120 crore till date under corporate social responsibility (CSR). On rehabilitation, Kumar said, “Bauxite is a hard rock which exists above 900 metres from the surface. Therefore, the Niyamgiri hills are neither crops nor inhabitants-friendly. Resistance is received from some section of the people with vested interest, as there is no habitation on the mines top and no displacement is involved.” It is a description which has been bitterly disputed by area residents and ecology activists, not only in India but also abroad. Bauxite mining in the Lanjigarh project is important for VAL to feed its one million-tonne (MT) alumina refinery and a 0.5 MT aluminium smelter. The mines in Lanjigarh possess a minimum 73 MT of reserves, likely to go up further. The optimal location of VAL affords easy reach to recoverable bauxite deposits of over 150 MT within a 60 km radius of Lanjigarh, the location of its alumina refinery. The bauxite variety here boasts of low reactive silica content, adaptability to low temperature and low pressure digestion, which entails low cost and high quality alumina production. VAL is further aided by availability of ample reserves of coal (62 billion tonnes) in Orissa, leading to low cost of power generation. Orissa, a mineral-rich state, possesses about 1.7 billion tonnes of India’s total bauxite reserves of 3.3 billion tonnes. Such an integrated aluminium complex, which would be one of the largest in Asia, would give a significant boost to the state economy, besides providing a number of jobs, says the company. VAL has invested in a 0.5 MT aluminum smelter and 1,215 Mw captive power plant, supported by highly modern infrastructure at Jharsuguda, Orissa. Jharsuguda is also the site of a 2,400 MW independent power plant being set up by group company Sterlite Energy Ltd to meet the growing demand for power from both urban and rural consumers. It intends to expand the fully integrated alumina refining capacity to around 2 MT. Further expansion would increase the project capacity to 5 MT by 2012, said Kumar, and then to 6 MT.

(Source:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/nod-for-niyamgiri-mines-likely-soon/375996/)

Nilgiris mining: HC asks govt to name errant officials

Chennai, November 11, 2009: The Madras High Court has directed the state government to submit the list of 35 violators and officials, who were identified by theCB-CID as being responsible for the reckless mining and quarrying activities in the Nilgiris. The list, along with the action, if any, taken against them shall be furnished before the court on Wednesday, ruled a division bench comprising justice SJ Mukhopadhaya and justice M Duraiswamy. The bench was passing orders on a public interest writ petition filed by advocate Elephant G Rajendran, managing trustee of In Defence of Environment and Animals (IDEA).  The petition, supported by a number of photographs, revealed a largescale plunder of natural resources in the Western Ghats. It named 14 locations where quarrying was going on unchecked for several years. He claimed that several hills were blasted with dynamites and over 5,000 truckloads of blue metal had been carted away from just four sites alone. This, inspite of the fact that a Supreme Court order in 2003 specifically banned excavation and quarrying activities in the hills.  In April 2008, a division bench of the court banned all forms of quarrying in the Nilgiris and directed the police and transport authorities to curb use of dynamite and impound heavy vehicles involved in the illegal mining operation. In October 2008, the court lamented that it was "pathetic that so many disturbances have been caused to natural resources." It also asked the CB-CID to probe the issue.  Passing further orders on the matter on November 5, the present division bench headed by justice Mukhopadhaya said the state government should come out with a scheme putting the onus of protecting the natural resources on the officers concerned. Elaborating, it said, "for example, if illegal mining is done in a particular area, tahsildar, officer-in-charge of the jurisdictional police station and the officer who has jurisdiction over the mining area may be held responsible for not taking any action against illegal miners. They may be proceeded departmentally and if necessary, may be suspended."  It then asked the advocate-general PS Raman to furnish the list of 35 officials and others identified by the additional director-general of police, CB-CID, who probed the issue.

(Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Nilgiris-mining-HC-asks-govt-to-name-errant-officials/articleshow/5217335.cms)

Mining mafia ruining environment: Patkar

Bellary, November 10, 2009: The national development planning policy draft will be presented to the government during the parliamentary session, which will begin from November 18. "The draft contains policies for better rehabilitation act and land acquisition process. We will camp in Delhi for its approval," said Narmada Bachao Andolan activist and environmentalist Medha Patkar, while addressing a press meet at Sirwara Cross on Tuesday.  She said: "The mining mafia is prevailing in Bellary. Without the consent of the gram sabha, the government cannot acquire the land according to the Constitution norms," she said. According to the norms, even the civil aviation authority or ministry of environment has not taken the environmental impact assessment seriously. The process is still in the preliminary stage. "At the local leadership under Sirwara Chaganuru Neeravari Bhoomi Rakshana Horata Samithi, we will fight hard to save the land," she added.

Farmers treated like minority

There are many adivasis, farmers and labourers who are self-reliant through agriculture. If the government goes to acquire 1,800 acres of land, many more un-estimated lands will suffer and many rivulets like Hagari will also get dry up. Farmers are treated like the minority, though they are the majority and so the government should provide social and economic security to farmers, said Patkar.  "They have every right to protect their livelihood and agitation is the only way to ensure that. No job or compensation is guaranteed by the government and whatever they say is just lip service. We will intensity our agitation through National Alliance for People's Movement, which has its roots all over the country," she added. 

SEZ= special exploitation zone

She spat venom at the Special Economic Zone and termed it the special exploitation zone. "Why can't the government make a special green zone or a special natural resource zone?" she asked.  She cited the example of Renukamma, a local villager, whose father-in-law sold 30 acres of land to the government, but it was left to waste and is growing weeds. The government can occupy such lands or the Reddy brothers can develop the Bellary airport," she said. "I will write a letter to both the Centre and state authorities on the issue and I will meet chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, in a few days," said Patkar.  Earlier in the day, she interacted with the villagers of Chaganuru and inspected the land in Chaganuru before addressing the public gathering in Sirwara.

(Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hubli/Mining-mafia-ruining-environment-Patkar/articleshow/5216786.cms)

69 Mines asked to stop work

Bhubaneswar, November 10, 2009: The State Government has identified 69 illegally operated mines and asked their owners to stop operations forthwith.  Identification of illegally operated mines is done by a task force constituted by the State Government in October. The task force is headed by Chief Secretary TK Mishra. The maximum number of 30 such mines are located in Joda area while 15 have been identified in Koida. There are nine illegal mines in Rourkela while in Keonjhar the number is five. Official sources said that the number of such mines is expected to increase with the progress of the investigation.

(Source:http://www.expressbuzz.com)

Kesarkar statement factually incorrect, alleges GOAMAP

Panaji, November 9, 2009: Goa Federation of Mines Affected People (GOAMAP) has strongly objected to the statements made by newly-elected Sindudurg member of  legislative assembly in Maharashtra Deepak Kesarkar. In a press note issued on Sunday, GOAMAP convenor Sebastian Rodrigues said, "Kesarkar, while referring to the Kalne mining revolt in Maharashtra, said that mining is not a major problem before society while unemployment is, and that mining is the way to solve the problem of unemployment. GOAMAP invites Kesarkar to visit Goa's Sirgao village in Bicholim taluka and be witness to the common phenomena of mining, creating not only unemployment for the large number of farmers cultivating their fields, but also creating a dangerous situation of food and water insecurity by causing siltation of paddy fields and depletion of groundwater flow." Stating that Kesarkar's statement is factually incorrect, Rodrigues alleged, "It is based on wild imagination and day dreaming after the due process of palm greasing by the mining industry." He further raised objection to Kesarkar's statement that mining companies must obey the law and that the pollution control boards and Ministry of environment and forest (MoEF) are there to take care of pollution created by the mining industry.  "GOAMAP challenges Kesarkar to give an example of at least one mine in the whole of India post independence wherein mining companies have complied with laws, and where the pollution control boards and MoEF have effectively implemented the laws. Currently mining companies are to obey 180 conditions under various clearances given by government agencies. None of these are obeyed by any of the mining companies anywhere in India nor are government agencies effective in implementing laws on mining companies."

(Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Kesarkar-statement-factually-incorrect-alleges-GOAMAP/articleshow/5209815.cms)

Orissa to inspect iron ore mines for violations

Bhubaneswar, November 7, 2009: The Orissa government will inspect several iron ore mines, a government official said, in a crackdown on firms involved in illegal mining or violating environment rules. Since July, the government has inspected seven mines and registered criminal cases against eight mine operators and officials of the forest and mine department, Anup Kumar Patnaik, director of the state vigilance department told Reuters. "In a week or so we will be able to lodge some more criminal cases. Further raids can also take place," Patnaik said. He said some mine operators were digging up ores and were transporting them without having necessary clearances, and some officials were abetting them. Orissa produced about 70 million tonnes of iron ore in 2008/09 out of India's total production of 222 million tonnes, data from Federation of Indian Mineral Industries shows. Iron ore exporters in Orissa said the raids had left mine owners cautious and many had scaled down operations with the result, supplies from the region had shrunk just when China's demand was picking up.  Patnaik said the mines had not been asked to shut production.

(Source:http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-43766820091107)

OMC issue has existed for years

Anantapur, November 6, 2009: Controversies relating to the Obulapuram mines have rocked the Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka Assemblies several times in the past few years. Mining business was in crisis till 2000. It was in 2003 that Mr Janardhan Reddy took over the lease of Obulapuram from Mr G. Rammohan Reddy as the latter was unable to pay even the customary cess to the government.  Luckily for Mr Janardhan Reddy, the demand for iron ore and other minerals skyrocketed in the international market. Mr Janardhan Reddy earned huge profits by exporting iron ore to China.  In 2005, the Telugu Desam had alleged that Mr Reddy was carrying out illegal mining activity, causing losses worth thousands of crores of rupees to the exchequer.  Dr Rajasekhar Reddy, then invited an all-party delegation to inspect the irregularities in mining site in 2007, but nothing irregular was detected. At present, Mr Janardhan Reddy owns the OMC-1 in 25.98 hectares, OMC-2 in 39.5 hectares, OMC-3 in 68.5 hectares, Anantapur Mining Company (AMC) in 6.5 hectares and Y Mahabaleswarappa & Sons (YM) mining company in 20.24 hectares in forest land of D. Hirehal mandal in Anantapur. His competitor, Mr Modi owns the Bellary Iron Ore Company in 27.12 hectares adjacent to OMC. Mr Modi has accused OMC of illegally encroaching upon 0.225 hectares of leased land for high-grade iron ore by destroying boundaries. He has moved the apex court seeking justice and the case is pending.

(Source:http://www.deccanchronicle.com/hyderabad/omc-issue-has-existed-years-769)

ArcelorMittal in talks with Jharkhand for Chiria mines

New Delhi, November 5, 2009: Global steel major ArcelorMittal, which has lined up Rs 1 lakh crore investments for India, said today it is in the race for a chunk of the mineral-rich Chiria mines in Jharkhand. “Steel producers are in discussions with the Jharkhand government over Chiria mines. We are also party to such discussions,” ArcelorMittal CEO (India & China) Vijay Bhatnagar said on the sidelines of the CII Steel Summit here. The Chiria mines, with reserves of 2 billion tonnes of high-grade iron ore, have been at the centre of an ownership battle for over four years. The mines were originally allotted to Indian Iron & Steel Company, which was merged with SAIL in 2005. While SAIL claims the ownership of the Chiria reserves by virtue of the merger, the Jharkhand government disputes it. The differences pertain mainly to the renewal of 4 leases — out of 10 iron ore mines — in the Chiria and Gua region. Besides ArcelorMittal, Tata Steel and JSW Steel have been eyeing the huge Chiria reserves and want rights to mine these. Struggling to get regulatory clearances and acquire land, besides iron ore reserves for two steel plants, one each in Jharkhand and Orissa, ArcelorMittal once again said that it would move out of the original sites. “We may look for alternative sites,” Bhatnagar said.

(Source:http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/arcelormittal-in-talksjharkhand-for-chiria-mines/375400/)

UCIL’s uranium pre-development plan kept in hold

Shillong, November 4, 2009: The chips have gone higher in the controversial uranium mining project in Meghalaya with the State Government announcing that a whopping Rs 2,098 crore would be pumped in to develop roads in the impoverished district. The government announced after a meeting with the Coordination Committee of Social Organisations (CCSO) and Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) separately that the government would not go ahead with the proposed Rs 2098 crore pre-development project of UCIL in the uranium mining area and would be “kept on hold” for three months. “A committee dubbed Joint Committee on Uranium Mining of Meghalaya (JCUMM) headed by Minister for Mining and Geology, Bindo Lanong as its Chairman, seven members from CCSO, KSU each, environmentalist, independent groups and representatives from the media would be part of the committee,” Chief Minister DD Lapang said after the meeting. Lapang said, both the State Government and the NGOs have decided today not to go ahead with the August 24 Cabinet decision. “It was agreed that the pre-development project in the 422 hectares of land in the mining area would be kept on hold for three months,” the CM said. He further informed that the government would go ahead with development projects worth Rs 188 crore in West Khasi Hills soon. “The fund is available and it would go into building of new infrastructure in the district,” Lapang added. Meanwhile, JCUMM would study the controversial Uranium mining subject and come up with a report for the government within three months. “Collective decision would be taken on the uranium mining subject taking everyone into consideration taking a fresh look on the issue,” Lapang said. When asked if the government was keeping on hold the pre-development project, bowing under pressure, Deputy Chief Minister Mukul Sangma said, political parties like HSPDP and KHNAM who sought vote with anti-Uranium mining as one of its election manifesto in the last Assembly elections was rejected by the people. “It means that people did not vote for these parties and therefore suggest the people’s mandate is not against uranium mining,” Sangma reasoned.

(Source:http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=nov0509/ne)

Govt planning regulators for coal, other infra sectors

New Delhi, November 4, 2009: Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee’s call for greater regulation of infrastructures sectors at Tuesday’s Economic Editor’s Conference echoed concerns made by experts in recent months. Sectors essential to growth and development of infrastructure are in dire need of independent regulators to set standards and guide policy implementation, the minister said. However, his plan would establish numerous industry specific regulators rather than one all-encompassing regulatory body for infrastructure, a plan which has generated steam. “Serious deliberations are underway for establishing a regulator for the coal sector and similar thought is now being given to other infrastructure sectors as well,” the finance minister said. Sectors such as roads and mining could establish regulators as calls for such entities become louder. Mukherjee celebrated the country’s ability to establish independent regulators in sectors such as airports, power, telecommunications and ports, which is purely a tariff regulator. However, each commission’s independence from the Centre is the chief concern among private companies who have witnessed collusion, such as that between state electricity regulators and their respective state governments.

(Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/govt-planning-regulators-for-coal-other-inf/536949/)

Mafias find Koira a mining paradise on earth
Bhubaneswar, November 3, 2009: The State Pollution Board and Mining Department generally issue mining lease to an applicant only after getting the nod of the Union Forests and Environment Ministry. Moreover, the Revenue Department calculates and specifies the area according to the map of mines and forest areas and accordingly demarcation of the lease area is done. As per the provision of the lease order, an allotter should raise minerals within the allotted area only. But, in reality, the mine mafias in the Koira division in Sundargarh district are raising minerals like iron and manganese ores in huge quantities from un-allotted areas quite comfortably and transporting the same in connivance with the office of the local Deputy Director of Mines (DDM) without paying a single paisa towards royalty. In other words, it can be well declared that it is a State-sponsored mining scam. Such unethical practices are not confined to one or two mines under Koira division. Rather it has been going on in many mines for years together with Koira being only the tip of the iceberg.  It is alleged that in connivance with the DDM's office at Koira, almost all the mining companies have been indulging in corrupt practices for years together. Because of these practices, the mine-owners, mafias, corrupt officials of forest, mining, revenue and police department and above all the politicians are earning crores of rupee as black money at the cost of public exchequer. When the mining scam was revealed and for days together the State Assembly was disrupted due to pandemonium, the State Government at first ordered vigilance inquiry into the allegation in Ram Bahadur Thakur Mines at Joda. At the outset of the raid, the sleuth department succeeded in seizing many suspicious documents indicating illegal mining for years together and taking into custody few mines mafias, forest and mines officials. After the vigilance raid and arrest of few involved persons, many followers of such illegal mining practices in Koira have become apprehensive since then. It is learnt that apprehending vigilance raid at Koira, the DDM's office is in a hurry to cover up the lapses. It has started putting up pillars in the demarcation areas of different mines. Even initiatives have been triggered to fill up illegal mining holes in order to establish that no mining is done in the area. To damage the proof of using duplicate transit permit (TP) book, 'G' Form and rectify the documents, many officials of the DDM's office at Koira have been working day and night, sources alleged. Despite all these, encroachment of JN Patnaik Mines in OMM's area in Bhanjapalli, indulging in illegal mining outside the leased area showing it as leased area, installing a huge crusher in the area and subsequent seizure of the crusher by the Forest and Mining Department establishes large-scale corruption by the department. Similarly, in Kantar Koira, it is understood from reliable sources that BS Mishra Mines has been taken on lease by a crusher owner who is illegally showing that the minerals have been raised from the lease area but actually precious ores in lakhs of tonnes are being raised illegally from the reserved forest area in connivance with the Mines and Forest departments. Even corrupt officials of both the departments are scared apprehending vigilance raid on this mine any time. The knowledgeable quarter feels that if this mine is raided many scams will be unearthed. So, in order to save themselves from vigilance net many officials and crusher owners have taken refuge in their political godfathers in Bhubaneswar.  It is also learnt from reliable sources that after the Vigilance raid on Rungta Mines, revenue loss in crores of rupees is apprehended. It is strongly urged that if the lease areas of Nadidihi, Teherai, Kusumdihi, Olaghat, Sana Indipur and Kantar Koira mines and the actual raising plot of Rungta Mines will be subjected to vigilance inquiry, many cases of corruption involving these big houses will not only be unearthed but also the protection given by the Government officials for years together to indulge in such illegal practices will be revealed. It is also felt that if honest and competent police officials working in other mining areas like coal are deployed in the special vigilance squad, it would lead to much better results.  Anyway, an early raid under the DDM, Koira, is the need of the hour, feel people.

(Source:http://www.dailypioneer.com/213142/Mafias-find-Koira-a-mining-paradise-on-earth.html)

Aravali mining: Role of cops under lens

Gurgaon, November 3, 2009: A vigilance inquiry into illegal mining in the Aravali has revealed the involvement of several police personnel and mining officials in Gurgaon. Sources said that staff of five police stations, some mining officials and senior transport department officials are under the scanner for alleged involvement in illegal mining. Senior officers of the investigation team say that action would be initiated against the errant officials of all the agencies very soon. According to sources, officers of five police stations — Sohna, Manesar, Bilaspur, Tavdu and Khedkidhaula — along with officials of the mining department and the district transport officer have been found guilty. As per the details of case number 17/2009 which is being investigated by the State Vigilance Bureau, illegal mining is going on in full swing in the Aravali with active cooperation of these officers. Two vigilance teams had in fact caught two trucks full of stones on October 28. These trucks had passed unchallenged through areas which are under the police stations where these officers were posted, said Yogendra Nehra, SP, Vigilance. The Supreme Court has banned mining in the Aravali and Gurgaon is one of the districts where the ban is applicable. The apex court is hearing a case related to mining. Nehra added the officers’ involvement is doubly grave given the strict stand the SC has taken in the matter and all efforts will be made to take appropriate action against the guilty. ‘‘We have initiated legal action against these officers,’’ he added.  This is not the first time police officers from these police stations have been found to be in connivance with illegal miners. In 2006, on the order of the then principal secretary (home), SHOs of Sohna, Manesar, Bilaspur and Tavdu were suspended because of involvement with miners. Despite several measures undertaken by the state government in the past to check illegal mining in the Aravali, the menace has continued to haunt the state. The SC, in its order, had banned mining in areas around Delhi and the Aravali because of pollution and a threat to ecological balance. However, mining activities have increased in the recent years, officials say. ‘‘With the 2010 Games scheduled in Delhi, construction activities have increased in the capital and surrounding areas. The usage of stones and other materials has increased and this has created a huge market which in turn is fuelling a resurgence of clandestine mining activity,’’ an official said.

(Source:http://epaper.timesofindia.com/)

Clean coal tech gets leg-up from oil cos

New Delhi, November 1, 09: India’s move to adopt clean coal technologies is making steady progress through a collaborative effort, with Coal India Ltd (CIL) getting much-needed support from its counterparts in the oil sector — GAIL (India) Ltd and ONGC. CIL and GAIL are collaborating to develop a surface coal gasification project at Talcher coalfield in Orissa for production of ammonium nitrate and urea.  “The techno-economic feasibility report has already been prepared. About 5.5 mtpa of coal from Mahanadi Coalfields will be required for this project and a long-term linkage of 5.5 mtpa is required from the Coal Ministry,” a CIL official told Business Line.  Last year, GAIL and CIL entered into an agreement to set up the surface coal gasification project for the production of synthesis gas to be used as feedstock for fertiliser production.  GAIL had organised a study by Udhe India for examining the potential of the project. It was estimated that the project will consume 5,000 tonnes of coal a day to produce 7.76 mscmd of synthesis gas (equivalent to 3,000 tonnes a day of ammonia) to produce 3,500 tonnes of urea a day. CIL is also working with ONGC for underground coal gasification projects.  The two are working on the development, operation and R&D activities. “We are working on projects short-listed from 15 sites all over India to prove the potential of the process,” an official said.  The technical expert for the venture is the Skochinsky Institute of Mining of Russia.  Underground coal gasification is an alternative and supplementary energy source, which allows converting un-mineable coal and lignite — which forms over 80 per cent of India’s 300-billion-tonne reserves — into combustible gases by gasifying the coal in-situ.  According to ONGC, environmental clearance for the first underground coal gasification pilot site at Vastan, Gujarat, has been obtained and its design has been firmed up. The pilot project is expected to commence production next year.

(Source:http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/11/02/stories/2009110251820100.htm)