Date | Aug 31, 2017:

The Supreme Court’s recent judgement on illegal mining in Odisha has laid down principles and standards to be followed all over the country in the use of natural resources. One remarkable part of the judgement was the quantum of compensation to be paid by lease-holders who had illegally mined iron ore and manganese ore. The court ordered that the compensation should be to the extent of 100% of the price of the extracted minerals. This is important because till now the highest compensation which was officially recommended was 30% of the cost of the minerals. The court felt that the lease-holder should not be allowed to retain 70% of the earnings from the illegally mined ore as that would not be a deterrent but only incentivise illegal mining. The 100% compensation is likely to become a standard to be followed in similar cases in future. This is welcome because violators of law often get away with payment of a token fine or compensation, making the offence profitable in any case.

The court’s clarification on the nature of illegal mining will also be useful in future cases. It said any excess extraction within the leased area is also illegal, just as mining outside the area is. The argument that environmental clearance was not needed for mining done before 1994, when the Environment Impact Assessment Notification was issued, was also rejected. The court held that environmental clearance was mandatory in cases of lease renewal also and in all cases of mining. With a comprehensive order on clearances, the court has plugged all the loopholes that have been used by mining companies, often in collusion with politicians and officials, to violate the norms of environmental protection.

The court’s order meant a penalty of about Rs 25,000 crore on miners and it will have a salutary impact on mining operations and clearances in other parts of the country. The ruling will influence decisions in many cases related to mining that are before various courts and tribunals. Implementation of the verdict will be sought in other states like Goa and Karnataka, where illegal mining has been rampant. Many mining firms will be made answerable for their activities, especially because approvals cannot be done retrospectively. The court has also told the central government to review the National Mining Policy, which it says has not been implemented properly “because of the involvement of powerful vested interests’’. It has also ordered the setting up of an expert committee which will examine the mistakes made in Odisha and suggest remedial steps to be followed by all states. The ruling might help to make the mining industry clean and rule-based in future.

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