PANJIM: A division bench of the Bombay High Court at Goa comprising Justices Mahesh Sonak and Bharat Deshpande on Thursday admitted a PIL filed by the Goa Foundation in the matter of auction of ore from an alleged illegal mining dump located on the former lease of Damodar Mangalji and Co (TC No.95/52) at Pissurlem.
The Court also confirmed the ad-interim relief granted to the petitioner by its earlier order dated April 12, 2022. The Court rejected a request from Vedanta, the principal successful bidder, to be permitted to get rid of 1,80,000 tonnes already transported by it from the dump at Pissurlem and lying at their jetty at Amona.
The Pissurlem Shetkari Sanghatna (PSS) had been protesting against the said mining dump transportation. Goa Foundation had filed a Public Interest Litigation Writ Petition (PILWP) in the matter seeking stoppage of transportation.
Activist Hanumant Parab representing the PSS has called it a victory of the farmers. “The farmers from Pissurlem were protesting on, March 11, 2022 when DySP Sagar Ekoskar and Valpoi Police Inspector Fadte had illegally assaulted me in Valpoi police lock-up. This is a great victory for the farmers,” he said.
The PIL challenged the e-auction of items listed under serial no. 29 of the 27th e-auction conducted on January 19, 2022, by the Department of Mines and Geology, Goa, and the transport permits granted thereafter to transport mineral ores from the so-called mining dump on former mining lease with TC No. 95/52 located at Pissurlem village in North Goa district.
The PIL pleaded that since several illegalities have been perpetrated by the lease holder in question, the dump site should not be touched pending finalisation of the investigation by an agency like the SIT (which is yet to visit the site).
The PIL alleged that the lease was affected by several illegalities. Large quantities of ore were declared removed from the lease and huge dumps created, when in actual fact no mining took place on the lease for more than two decades.
The PIL challenged the transportation of dumps in view of the Supreme Court’s order staying such activity till the Apex Court had the occasion to consider the report of the Expert Committee appointed by it. That report had been filed, but was yet to be taken up for consideration. The High Court in its order noted that till the SC took up the matter and issued orders, no mining of dumps could be permitted.
The Court also considered the petitioner’s plea that challenged the e-auction attempted to place the stack of 3 lakh tonnes for legitimacy under the order of the Supreme Court dated April 21, 2014 (Goa Foundation I). This could only be done under the supervision of the Monitoring Committee appointed by the SC.
GF challenged the characterisation of the ore by Italab, Margao, produced by the Goa government. It produced laboratory analysis from an advanced laboratory based in Mumbai of samples collected from the same dump which indicated the Fe content was not 42% (Italab) but actually 29%.
