Panaji | Nov 29, 2016: Goa state pollution control board (GSPCB) on Monday granted four more mining companies with a combined iron ore extraction limit of 0.78 million tonnes consent to operate, taking the total ore extraction limit in the state to 16 million tonnes.

The consent granted under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, is valid for a period of one year.

GSPCB, in a board meeting, allowed Salgaonkar Mining Industries (Tolem de Quela-Keli) to extract of 0.046 million tonnes of ore, Salitho Ores Pvt Ltd (Purmar e Parvedat-Pale) to extract 0.277 million tonnes, Sova (Odamola) to extract 0.346 million tonnes, and Marzook and Cadar Pvt Ltd (Devachi Raim) to extract 0.115 million tonnes.

“Applications from mining companies were placed before the board’s technical advisory committee along with an inspection report of mines that were visited by board officials,” a GSPCB official said. Upon the committee’s approval, the applications were placed before the board, which granted the consent to operate, the official added.

The Supreme Court, in its 2014 judgement in an illegal mining case, had put a cap of 20 million tonne on iron ore extraction in the state.

Following that, in July 2015, GSPCB granted consent to operate 56 mining leases and extract 13.79 million tonne of iron ore, subject to approval of mining plans by the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM). In January 2016, four more mining companies with an ore extraction limit of 1.5 million tonne were granted consent to operate. In July 2016, two more mining companies with an extraction limit of 0.2 million tonnes were granted consent as well.

(Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/)