TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Suspension of mining operations for the past 30 months, has forced Vedanta Resources-Sesa Sterlite Ltd, to shut down the football academy and technical school as a part of cost cutting measures. It has now also temporarily suspended activities under the corporate social responsibility (CSR), the company claims. According to them such activities were operational in seven villages benefiting nearly three lakh people from the mining areas.
The company had joined hands with Matruchaya, an NGO to manage the community medical centres (CMCs) to provide healthcare access to communities across the company’s area of operations and the same has been stopped this month onwards.
A senior Sesa official said that suspension of mining for the last two-and-a-half years, and the delay in issuances of various approvals for its resumption had forced the company to take these decisions.
“Also the international iron ore prices have fallen to a six-year low and at the current prices, additional burdens in the form of 30 per cent export duty, limits on capacities, various levies such as Goa Permanent Fund, increased royalty, district mineral fund, etc, have made iron ore mining uneconomical and therefore to support such initiatives is practically impossible,” the official said.
Matruchaya official Dixit said that this was expected given the suspension of mining operations and the financial crunch mining companies have been facing.
