In 1993, about 20 adivasis were recruited by the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Department as guides for the Archean age (4000 to 2500 million years) Borra Caves, located in the Anantagiri hills of Araku Valley in Visakhapatnam agency. Read more
Courtesy: The Hindu
New Delhi: Chhattisgarh’s request for a revision in royalty rates on coal to 30 per cent from the existing 14 per cent ad-valorem, will push up the cost of electricity by 7 per cent or 10-12paisa/kWh, India Ratings today said in a report.
The state government has constituted a study group to consider the revision in the royalty rates based on the request.
“Ind-Ra believes the royalty hike looks quite steep at 30 per cent, and if accepted, it will lead to coal attracting the highest ad-valorem duty compared to all other minerals,” the report said.
Assuming a pithead price of Rs 720 per tonne for coal, the royalty increase will also lead to a higher contribution towards district mineral foundation (DMF) at 30 per cent of royalty and National Mineral and Exploration Trust (NMET) at 2 per cent of royalty, which translates into a higher cost of electricity generation by 10-12paisa/kWh. Read more
Courtesy: Energy world
Yeh koyle ki khaan ek ajgar hai… joh roz anginat mazdooron ko nighalta hai aur unhe chabake, peeske, kuchalke… ek laash ki soorat mein unhe vapas ughal deta hai (This coal mine is a python which swallows countless workers every day and chews them, crushes them, smashes them and then spits out their dead bodies): Yash Chopra isn’t best remembered for Kaala Patthar (1979), which focused on the Chasnala mining disaster that took place near Dhanbad and claimed nearly 400 lives. Instead, he’s known for tulip fields, Swiss snow dust and the romantic woes of bipolar Indians. Activists feel that is the problem with mining. Particular incidents are of national interest but the reasons, allowing them to occur and re-occur, aren’t dramatic enough to hold a nation’s attention. Read more
Courtesy: First Post
Nearly Rs 5,000 crore has been collected so far through District Mineral Foundation (DMF), which will be utilised by the states for the development of places and people affected by mining-related operations.
The Mines Ministry is monitoring the implementation of the DMF and the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY). “So far about Rs 5,000 crore has been collected in the fund (DMF),” an official said.
The official further said, except for Tamil Nadu, all the remaining major mineral-bearing states have instituted DMF and adopted guidelines in Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana, the official said.
As follow up of Committee of Secretaries’ (CoS) meetings, discussions were held with National Institute of Smart Government (NISG) for development of a national portal to monitor the implementation of projects/schemes being undertaken under this major welfare initiative of the Centre, the official added. Read more
Courtesy: Business Standard
State level workshop on Children and Mining was conducted at Ghatsila, Jharkhand. The meeting was presided over by the Chairperson and Secretary General of mm&P. The Chairperson introduced the theme of the workshop and why children’s rights should not be neglected especially in the mining areas.
A short documentary film “Falling through the cracks – Children and Mining” was screened and followed by a detailed session on the plight of children in mining areas by the Secretary General of mm&P. Participatory approach was followed in sensitizing the people on violation of child rights in the context of Children in mining areas.
One issue that was prominently discussed was the plight of migrant laborers especially women and children. Most of the CSR or development activities by the mining company or the administration do not take into account the migrant population. These are the most marginalized groups who find it hard to understand the reasons for discrimination at all levels of our society.
