Panaji | April 11, 2017: The Goa Mines and Geology Department will seek an enhanced target of 8 million tonnes for iron ore extraction and exports till June this year before the advent of monsoon.

This move comes in the wake of the Goa leaseholders reaching the cap of 20 million tonnes in the financial year 2016-2017 for the first time since Supreme Court partially lifted ban on iron ore extraction and exports in May 2013.

The Director of Mines and Geology, Prasanna Acharya, told The Hindu on Tuesday that the government has moved the Supreme Court for enhanced production limit to raise the annual cap to 30 million tonnes, based on the recommendation of the expert committee set up by the court.

He said if the approval is received, his department would equitably distribute the target among the leaseholders over eight months as mining activity comes to a halt in the monsoon months of June to September.

Mr. Acharya said that at a meeting of the representatives of the miners\leaseholders last week, he stressed on regulation and monitoring of the extraction and transportation of the ore. There would be “zero tolerance” to reckless driving and fatal accidents, he said. Emphasis would also be laid, he added, on efficient and scientific mining and transportation, with minimal dust pollution, to the jetties where the ore is taken over by river transport.

He said for the first time his department has decided to use “carrot and stick policy” to incentivise leaseholders for reporting illegalities and irregularities in the sector.

“We have put it in the minutes that while the reporting leaseholder would be rewarded and confidentiality maintained, the erring leaseholder would be penalised with cut in the allotted annual extraction quota.”

Mr. Acharya said it has been mandated that the leaseholder will own responsibility for compensation in case of accident during transportation of ore. He said the Director of Mines would come into the picture later to hear the various parties involved including leaseholder, trader, transport contractor, owner of vehicle and driver before fixing responsibility and the decision of the Director would be final.

In case of a fatal accident the leaseholder would immediately be required to deposit ₹10 lakh with the mining department, ₹5 lakh in case of serious injuries and ₹1 lakh for simple injuries to be paid to the victim or dependents.

Moreover, in case of a fatal accident involving even an empty truck on the ore transportation route, the department will deduct immediately one lakh tonnes from the annual quota allotted to the leaseholder. The meeting was attended by representatives of eight mining lease-holders.

The initial ban by the Supreme Court followed submission of thee Justice M. B. Shah Commission Inquiry report on illegal mining which estimated a ₹35,000 crore loss to Goa State exchequer due to illegal mining. The report had also directed the Centre and State to probe the illegalities and irregularities in the mining sector and punish the guilty.

Activists opposed to illegal mining, Claude Alvares and Ramesh Gawas, who have been fighting the State legally as well as through the village communities, have expressed disappointment that nobody has been held accountable by the government so far for all the illegalities. They have also approached the Bombay High Court questioning the decision of the State to allot mining leases to most of those miners who were indicted in the report.

Goa exported around 50-54 million tonnes of iron ore, annually, at the peak of boom in Chinese steel industry, earning foreign exchange worth over ₹20,000 crores. The ban by the Supreme Court ban grounded the industry.

(Source: http://www.thehindu.com/)