Resumption of mining: GF against legislative cure, slams industrial bodies

Team Herald 

Panjim: The Goa Foundation (GF) has slammed various industrial bodies for backing “legislative cure” to resume iron ore mining industry in Goa, stating that the demand is “immoral, unconscionable and unconstitutional”.

The Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Confederation of Indian Industry Goa Chapter and Goa State Industries Association  had recently issued a joint statement where they felt that a “legislative cure” would have been the ideal and quickest way for the Centre to allow Goa to resume mining, thereby allowing leases to operate for 50 years from May 1987, till May 2037. 

“We are quite surprised that the entire business community of the State is supportive of such an obviously unfair system that is selling off our wealth to a few for peanuts, and for maintaining a corrupt system. Poor uncaring governance is not in the interest of either environmentalists like us, or industry like you,” Goa Foundation Director Claude Alvares said in a statement issued. 

GF questioned as why the “legislative cure”, to extend life of leases, is the preferred option of the politicians and miners, when the Supreme Court, through its judgment dated April 21, 2014, has clearly declared that all mining carried out in Goa after November 22, 2007 as illegal. 

“Normally, an entity found to have been guilty of illegal mining for such a long period would be blacklisted, deemed unfit to manage public wealth. However, it is obvious to everyone that with such large amounts at stake, and after illegal mining took place for nearly five years, why leases were again renewed in 2014-15 instead of fresh leases being granted, and why a ‘legislative cure’ is the preferred option of the miners and the politicians,” Alvares said. 

He also pointed out that it’s been two-and-half years since mining was stopped on March 15, 2018, with no movement, will “legislative cure” be the quickest way to resume mining? 

“Had the State government adopted either the auction or the State mining route, surely operations could have begun by now,” he maintained.