Team Herald
PANJIM: In a bid to ensure that iron ore mining lease holders adhere to the Supreme Court directions from March 16, the State government will keep watch at all 88 mining lease sites through a special monitoring team.
The Supreme Court on February 7 had quashed the second renewal of 88 mining leases and directed them to stop operations after March 15.
Sources reveal that as per procedure, Directorate of Mines and Geology (DMG) will forward copies of the Supreme Court judgment to all 88 lease holders directing them to adhere to the directions imposed by the Court.
A special monitoring team comprising of representatives of Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), Director General of Mines Safety and DMG will conduct inspections from March 16 to ensure that the operations are closed. “As on date, we have to go as per the Apex Court verdict and we are working in that direction,” sources said.
It is learnt that the team will assess the quantity of extracted ore lying at the respective sites and jetties. “Government is considering auctioning the dumps and extracted ore to ensure that mining operations continue and there is business for trucks, barges and other dependents,” Senior Minister Ramakrishna Dhavalikar had told the House on Wednesday.
There are roughly 750 million tonnes of ore lying at various sites in the form of rejects/dumps. There are another four million tonnes of ore, extracted before September 2012, to be auctioned as per earlier directions from the apex court.
Only 47 mines of those granted second renewal were in operation from September 2015 till date, and were involved in extraction of 42 million tonnes of fresh ore. However, roughly, 20 million tonnes of ore were exported till mid-February.
The Supreme Court, while quashing the second renewals, directed the government to initiate fresh process for granting leases.
