TEAM HERALD
PANJIM : The Bharatiya Janata Party led government is all for legalizing the illegal activity of dumping iron ore rejects outside the mining lease area. The state government has urged the Union Mines Ministry to consider incorporating provisions of dumping outside the lease area in the recently amended Mines and Minerals Development Regulation (MMDR) Act, 2015, making the activity as “legal”.
Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar in a letter to Union Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has requested to consider the proposal to remove the deadlock in resumption of full fledged mining operations by giving effect to the further required amendment in the act.
“The amended MMDR Act, 2015 does not include the legislative provision to allow dumping of iron ore rejects outside the mining lease area, which was required for resumption of full fledged mining operations in Goa, keeping in view the peculiar situation of mining leases in the State,” Parsekar, who also holds the mining portfolio, said.
“In fact, by incorporating provisions for dumping outside of lease hold areas, the operational and logistical difficulties faced by the lease holders in scientific and efficient extraction of ore, especially in smaller lease areas,in Goa as well as rest of the country, would have been resolved by lawfully addressing any perceived conflict between the extant situation and judgment of Supreme Court,” the chief minister added.
The Supreme Court in its order passed on April 21, 2014, has said that the dumping of iron ore rejects outside the mining lease area as illegal.
Even Additional Secretary Mines, government of India, R Sridharan during his Goa visit in February this year, had said that the dumping outside lease area continues to be illegal since the amended MMDR Act has not enlightened on the issue.
Accordingly, the state had on February 26 written to the Union government for incorporation of the provision making the activity legal.
The state has nearly 750 million tons identified dumps. The apex court has already formed a six member committee to recommend how the dumps can be scientifically handled. The report will be submitted in October, this year.
