Category: Mining

Mineral block auctions delayed

The New Indian Express || 04 April 2019

Fate of around 230 mineral blocks for which leases run out in March 2020 remain uncertain with auctions put on hold until the polls are over

With elections just around the corner, the fate of about 230 mineral blocks for which leases run out in March 2020 remain uncertain with auctions having been put on hold until the polls are done. The central government had planned to auction off about a 100 of these by the end of March, but a lack of bidders, regulatory hurdles at the state level and legal issues have played spoilsport.

Now, officials say, auctions will be held only after polling for the Lok Sabha elections ends in May, raising concerns on whether the process would be completed before the leases run out next year. According to a report from the Ministry of Mines, Jharkhand is set to see the highest number of blocks going under the hammer at 20, followed by states like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Telangana and Assam. Read more

Dhanbad DMF funds city infrastructure projects, neglecting mining-affected people

Down to Earth || Chinmayi Shalya, Rajeev Ranjan || 03 April 2019

The district’s latest Rs 307 crore sanctions fail issues of livelihood and healthcare, which are longstanding challenges for the worst-affected mining areas

LED street lighting, renovation of town hall and a multi-crore flyover is most of what Dhanbad district has invested in through a fund meant for mining-affected people and areas.

The latest investments made by Dhanbad under District Mineral Foundation (DMF) show that about 86 per cent of the Rs 307 crore-plus sanctions are for physical infrastructure in the town, having no bearing on the pressing needs of the mining-affected people. This includes a Rs 256 crore flyover, Rs 4 crore for LED street lighting and another Rs 5 crore town hall renovation, as per details available from the state mines department. Read more

Minerals Are Shared Inheritance: How Can We Ensure That Our Children Inherit Their Share?

The Logical India || Contributors Written by : Rahul Basu (Guest Author) || Edited by : Bharat Nayak || April 2nd, 2019

If mining destroys the environment, the minerals are sold and the mineral stock depleted, what is there for future generations? The National Mineral Policy 2019 lays a systematic foundation for the implementation of the Intergenerational Equity Principle. While rooted in the Constitution, some steps need to be taken quickly to reduce uncertainty to the mining industry.

How do we implement intergenerational equity? The Supreme Court has faced this question first in the Bellary iron ore scam, next in the Goa iron ore scam and later in the Odisha iron ore scam. In its judgment in the Odisha mining case (Common Cause vs Union of India & Others, WP(c) 114 of 2014), the Supreme Court of India discussed the Intergenerational Equity Principle in the context of a demand for a future generations fund and a cap on extraction and ordered a review of the National Mineral Policy 2008. Goa Foundation, the petitioner in the Goa mining cases, has advocated a holistic approach to the implementation of the intergenerational equity principle in mining. Read more

Long road ahead: Odisha’s DMF funds to improve livelihood

Down to Earth || Chinmayi Shalya || 02 April 2019

The state has amended its DMF Rules and is also investing in projects to improve the lives of its mining-affected people; whether DMF lives up to its promised potential is yet to be seen

Gangaram Munda of Kasira village in the Koida region of Odisha’s Sundargarh district, is now 40. He remembers working in an iron ore mine until 15 years ago before the companies started getting labour from outside and mining became increasingly mechanised. Read more

Seven decades after Independence, many in Odisha’s villages still drink contaminated water from pits

First Post || Manish Kumar || Mar 27, 2019

A large section of the rural populace of Keonjhar district in Odisha is struggling for access to a basic survival need.

A network of 60 reporters set off across India to test the idea of development as it is experienced on the ground. Their brief: Use your mobile phone to record the impact of 120 key policy decisions on everyday justify; what works, what doesn’t and why; what can be done better and what should be done differently. Their findings — straight and raw from the ground — will be combined in this series, Elections on the Go, over a course of 100 days.

Keonjhar: Seven decades of Independence and other progress notwithstanding, a large section of the rural populace of Keonjhar district in Odisha is struggling for access to a basic survival need — safe drinking water. To make matters worse, this Lok Sabha constituency, which has the maximum operational mines in the state, is also being ravaged by miners, who are minting money at the cost of natural resources. Read more

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