PANAJI | Nov 16, 2017: After the end of the monsoon season, iron ore extraction activity has started in Goa but the pace has been slow.

Of the total 89 mines, only ten have started their operations, a senior Goa government official said today.

The current mining season, which started on November 1, has been slow paced due to poor prices for low grade ore in the international market coupled with several local issues, he said.

"Only ten mines out of the 89 which have got consent to operate under the Air and Water Pollution Control Act have started operations. Till date, 0.839 million tonnes of ore has been extracted by them," the official from the mines and geology department told .

The extraction activity is expected to pick up pace in the days to come, he said.

The mining sector virtually comes to a standstill after the arrival of the southwest monsoon in the coastal state which is usually around first week of June.

"The mining activity, which includes extraction, transportation and export of iron ore, comes to a temporary halt during the four-month-long monsoon season," he said.

"Though the business was suppose to commence in October, it was delayed due to various reasons like fall in prices in the international market and agitation by truck operators involved in ferrying ore over transportation charges," the official added.

Top mining firms like Vedanta Iron Ore and Fomento are among those who have started operations.

Data available with the State Directorate of Mines and Geology revealed that 5.52 million tonnes of ore have been extracted so far in the current financial year.

"Of this, 4.69 million tonnes were produced before the monsoon season when total 40 mining leases were operational," he said.

Mining leases have to renew their consent to operate from the Goa State Pollution Control Board annually after the monsoons.

In the last fiscal, 46 mines produced 20 million tonnes of ore. The state can export 20 million tonnes of ore annually, which is the ceiling prescribed by the Supreme Court.

(Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/)