Team Herald
CURCHOREM: The mining affected people from Sanvordem under the banner of Goa Mining Peoples Front participated in a candlelight rally from Sanvordem Tisk to Ambedkar Circle at Curchorem demanding immediate resumption in mining activities in the state.
Speaking to media persons after the rally, Sanvordem MLA Deepak Pauskar said he is with the front and urged the government to formulate the mining policy within 15 days by involving the affected people and restart legal mining immediately failing which people will march to Panjim once again.
“Government should form the Goa Mining Corporation Society and reinstate the employees whose services were terminated by various mining companies,” said Pauskar.
Shrikant of Chowgule Mines said till now they have not retrenched any employee and have been disbursing the salaries but after three months they cannot predict what will happen and urged the government to restart mining immediately.
“Since the government has not followed the proper procedures while granting the leases, Supreme Court directed them to follow the proper procedure to commence the mining,” said Sesa Goa official Rama Sawant.
He informed that they have around 4500 employees in Goa and no one has been retrenched as yet.
“Our jobs are at stake and therefore my sincere request to the government is to take the issue seriously and initiate necessary steps to restart mining,” requested Reema D’Silva, an employee.
Earlier, during the programme “Jana Gana Mana Noman Tuka Goemkara” Opposition Leader and Quepem MLA Chandrakant Babu Kavalekar criticised the government for its inaction in resolving various issues including mining.
“Following the Supreme Court order, the government had over a month’s time to find a solution but it remained silent and failed to take any precaution,” Kavalekar said.
He said the Congress party does not want to politicise the mining issue as many people are dependent on mining and therefore they supported the government. They even went to Delhi with the delegation but government has not taken the issue seriously.
