Silicosis: Gujarat HC asks Employees’ State Insurance Corp to pay compensation to 9 victims of deadly disease

The Gujarat High Court has dismissed the appeal filed by the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), Vadodara, challenging the order of the ESI Court, Vadodara to pay disablement benefit as compensation to nine silicosis victims, all of whom are adivasis from Gujarat.
Belonging to the Jhalod block in Dahod district, these tribal workers had gone to work in quartz crushing units of Godhara between 2000 and 2005. They were exposed to high level of silica dust at work. Soon they started getting sick and some died. Many left the workplace and went back to their native home. Read more

Courtesy: Counterview

Mining rehabilitation plan for whom?

Ballari: Each Gram Panchayat in the iron ore mining belt of Ballari-Sandur-Hosapete is likely to get Rs 2 crore grant per annum to undo the damages of mining till next ten years. Ballari deputy commissioner Mr Ram Prasath Manohar, while addressing a public consultation, has stated that funds will be allocated to panchayats from the corpus of Karnataka Mining Environment Restoration Corporation (KMERC), the special purpose vehicle (SPV) set up by the state government to carry out the restoration process.

Central Empowered Committee (CEC) of the Supreme Court had recommended a Rs 30,000 crore mega project to undo the damage done to the environment of Ballari, Chitradurga and Tumkur district by reckless mining operations. The green bench of the Supreme Court later directed the state government to set up a company to formulate and implement projects under the Comprehensive Environment Plan for Mining Impact Zone (CEPMIZ) With such huge money involved, elected representatives in the mining region are making a beeline to submit major action plans worth hundreds of crore. Read more

Courtesy: Deccan Chronicle

VV Minerals takes strong objection to special team’s assessment report

CHENNAI: Minerals major VV Minerals of Tirunelveli has taken strong objection to the findings of a special team headed by IAS officer Satyabrata Sahoo, in his report on the assessment of beach sand minerals stored at various places in Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari districts, that has been filed before the Madras High Court in March last.

Originally, Gagandeep Singh Bedi, the then Revenue secretary, was appointed as head of the special
team in 2013. While so, one G Victor Rajamanickam filed a PIL petition in the High Court for constitution of another special investigation team to probe alleged beach sand mining in the three coastal districts.
Following a direction from the first bench on the PIL and other batch of writ appeals and petitions, the government on April 7, 2017 nominated Sahoo, who was then chairman and managing director of TIDCO, as the head of the special team. The court had also appointed advocate V Suresh as the amicus curiae to assist the court. The report was filed before a division bench of Justices M Sathyanarayanan and N Seshasayee in March last. Read more

Courtesy: The New Indian Express

Government to put over 100 mineral blocks in next round of auction

A bunch of 102 mineral blocks are being readied by different states to be put up for the next round of mining auction soon. The move is in line with the government policy to speed up auction of existing blocks and accelerate exploration of potential blocks across the country.

Speaking at the 4th National Conclave on Mines & Minerals, union mines minister Narendra Singh Tomar said out of the 43 blocks auctioned so far, some eleven blocks have started production. Read more

Courtesy: The Economic Times

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