Team Herald
MARGAO: After studying the published draft on the proposed mining reforms, the Gakuved Federation in a statement issued on Tuesday, expressed anguish over the fact that the said draft only talks about the enhancement of private investments without any mention about the mining affected tribal people who have been devastated due to past iron ore, coal mining.
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Gakuved Federation is the oldest registered organisation, which looks after the socio-economic development of Tribal communities of Goa.
They opined that promoting private investments in the mineral sector will further lead to privatisation of Goa’s mineral resources. “The present amended Act (2015 amendment) allows auctioning of the leases for the term up to 50 years. One cannot derive the actual value of the mineral resources from the calculations that are limited up to 50 years. We need to think about the future generations. The value of minerals can be 100 or 1,000 times more after 100 or 200 years. Hence we are required to restrain ourselves from using our precious mineral resources as we have already utilised the share of our present generation” said Rupesh Velip, Gakuved General Secretary.
Speaking on behalf of the mining affected adivasis and other mining affected communities of Goa, they asserted that before any decisions are taken on commencement of mining and enhancement of private investments in the sector, the State Government should first make the recovery of the alleged illegal mining loot.
The Federation further suggested opting for a ‘Co-operative’ model of mining rather than bringing in more private vested interests in the mineral sector.
“We are of the firm opinion that the entire mining activities should be carried out by the village co-operatives. The mineral resources raised by the villages can be then purchased by the private players in active supervision of the State and Central Government. This will help to make villages ‘Atmanirbhar’ and will also open doors to create employment” said Velip.
“The mining affected communities who are mostly tribals and farming communities are never taken into confidence or consideration while deciding the mining policy. We have cases where the lands of these farmers and tribals are forcibly taken over by the private mining companies living them to suffer in their villages resulting in their forceful migration. The tribals of Goa are deeply connected to the land and forests. Their forests have been destroyed and their water is taken away by digging deeper and deeper on their motherland. When protested, they were either bitten or sent behind the bars,” Velip added.
The Federation also claimed that that the District Mineral funds are kept unutilised.
“The State Govt has always given more interest in protecting the interest of the mining companies. The DMF is not functioning. There are proposals pending before the DMF committees and then we have come across a decision of the Central Govt to utilise these DMF funds for the COVID-19 pandemic even though people living in mining villages are suffering since several decades,” Velip added.
Hence, they concluded that in order to bring a real reform in the mineral sector, the Central and State Govt need to bring a ‘sustainable people oriented mining policy’ for the upliftment, betterment and socio-economic development of the mining affected rural India.
