Recommends another panel to suggest a cap on further mining
TEAM HERALD
NEW DELHI: Borrowing from the September 2011 order on the Karnataka iron ore mines, the Supreme Court on Monday gave a go-ahead to the Goa government for e-auctioning of 11.48 million tonnes of the extracted iron ore lying unused in the State for over a year since it banned all mining activities in the State in October last year, under the supervision of its appointed committee, while setting up another 6-member expert committee, to recommend a cap on further mining, keeping in mind sustainable development.
The ban on mining activity that was imposed on October 5, 2012, on a petition by Goa Foundation on the basis of the Shah Commission report alleging gross irregularities and loss of some Rs 35,000 crore, meanwhile, remains.
The court ordered listing of the matter after receipt of the two committees’ reports in sealed covers in February 2014, while noting that by that time the Dhanbad-based Indian School of Mines and National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) too would submit their reports.
Meanwhile, the next five months of the mining season would have already lapsed by the time the case comes up for further hearing and the formalities that may be directed, like Karnataka, will mean no mining will happen in Goa for the second consecutive season as the Apex Court reiterated its order last month reserving the verdict on the cross-petitions seeking the restoration of mining activities currently under ban.
E-AUCTION MONITORS: In an interim order, the 3-judge green bench headed by Justice A K Patnaik constituted a 3-member monitoring committee, including a representative to be named by the Goa chief secretary, to oversee the e-auction while rejecting the State government’s plea for a regular auction of the iron ore. Karnataka’s Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest U V Singh and former member Central Board of Direct Taxes M Sheikh are the two other members of the committee. The member to be appointed by the Chief Secretary would not be less than the rank of the Joint Secretary at the Centre, the court said.
The proceeds from the sale of the iron ore will be kept in separate fixed deposit accounts by the Goa government till the apex court issues a final order on the matter and the committee was directed to file its report of the e-auction before the Supreme Court by February 15. The interim report was also sought by February 15 from the other committee that will carry out the “macro environment impact assessment study” to suggest the cap to be imposed on the quantum of mining every year keeping in view the inter-generational equity.
EXPERT PANEL: The Bench, which also included Justices S S Nijjar and Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim Kalifulla, said the 6-member expert committee for suggesting a cap on mining would consist of an ecologist, a geologist, a mineralogist, an expert on forests, and one member each nominated by State-owned NMDC which alone has an unsold lump stock of about two MT, the Goa Chief Secretary and the Secretary of the Ministry of Environment and Forests.
The court sought the names of the ecologist, geologist, mineralogist and an expert on forest from the Centre and other parties as also representatives of the chief secretary and environment secretary within one week and these would be incorporated in the order next Monday on November 18.
It also made it clear that the traveling and other expenses, including remuneration, of the members of the two committees who are not in the government services would be drawn from the money that would come from e-auctioning of the iron ores.
KARNATAKA EXPERIENCE: Representatives of the mine owners are unhappy that the iron ore dumps belonged to them but they will have no say on them as they will be put to e-auction by the state government. They wonder if anybody would come forward in the e-auction as none has any firm orders in hand for exports after the Apex Court banned mining activities. They cite the case of Karnataka where no bidders have been found for 3.37 million tonnes of iron ore lumps at e-auctions and that includes the unsold lump stock of about two million tonnes lying with the State-owned National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC).
Anyone buying the iron ore in the e-auction will have an eye on China where all Goan ores were going before the ban.
India used to be the world’s third-largest exporter of iron ore, shipping out ore worth more than $7 billion per year, with much of it coming from Goa. But restrictions in Goa and neighbouring Karnataka to clamp down on illegal mining have slashed output and exports.
India’s shipments to China have slowed to a trickle at just over 8 million tonnes from January to September, down 75 per cent from the previous year.
Most of Goa’s iron ore goes to China, fetching about $75 per tonne for low-grade ore of less than 52 per cent iron content, which is useless for the steel mills in India.
Top private sector mining companies have pending export orders and would bid for all available iron-ore on the e-auction to fulfill their commitments, it is expected.
