PORVORIM: While stating that the exact loss of government revenue due to illegal mining cannot be made public, pending inquires by the Special Investigating Team (SIT), Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant on Tuesday told th eHouse that the government will issue recovery notices to 42 mining firms that were involved in illegalities resulting into loss to the State exchequer.
Sawant also assured to fast track the nine cases currently under investigation by the SIT, pending which the names of persons against whom proceedings are underway, in connection with illegal mining, cannot be provided or disclosed.
The Chief Minister said that the SIT is investigating the mining matter and revenue losses based upon the findings in the Shah Commission Report, Central Empowered Committee Report and the Public Accounts Committee Report and on other documents, submitted along with the complaint filed by the Director of Mines and Geology.
“Total nine cases are under investigation, of which in one case, accused has been acquitted by lower court. We have gone to High Court, seeking revision of the same,” he said, responding to a question by Congress MLA Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, who sought to know the status of the SIT investigation and names of the people against whom cases have been filed.
Sawant said that all the cases will be fast-tracked and that before the next Assembly session, the outcome will be known.
Responding to the failure to recover the losses incurred due to illegal mining as pointed out by Chartered Accountants, which is pegged at Rs 1200 crore, Sawant said the government is in the process of issuing notices to 42 companies.
“Within this month, recovery notices will be issued to 42 mining companies. What will be the exact amount to be recovered cannot be specified at this point. But we will make sure that all the losses are recovered,” the Chief Minister said, adding that so far an amount of Rs 3.99cr has been recovered from three mining companies.
Sawant said that the SIT investigation will help quantify the exact losses to State exchequer.
Earlier, Lourenco had demanded that the government apologise to the people for misleading them on the mining scam. He said that BJP used the Shah Commission report to put Congress in bad light during the elections.
