6,000 organisations want mining permit in Bellary

The Supreme Court has more than 6,000 applications pending before it, seeking approval for mining in the already-ravaged Bellary district. The state government itself has mentioned this in its 21-page submission to the Supreme Court on December 10, 2012.

A copy of the government’s submission is available with DNA. According to it, the government has expressed its desire of establishing Karnataka Mineral Rich Region Development Corporation to look into mining and related issues.

Welcoming the SC-appointed Central Empowered Committee’s (CEC) recommendation on special-purpose vehicle (SPV), the state submitted that the SPV will function under the chairmanship of the chief secretary and senior officers of various departments. However, the government has recommended that a person from the mining industry be made the director of the SPV.

Further, the state has argued that the state government, not the Supreme Court, should be given the right to issue licence for mining. This, even though the act under which the licences are granted is a central act. The government’s submission stated that the SC has not clarified whether its permission is required before starting the process of granting mining licence or after the final scrutiny.

Also, the government has stated in its submission that there is a need to relax the annual limit of mining 30 million metric tonnes of iron ore. This is the limit prescribed by the CEC. The government’s submission argued that the limit is too low to meet the demand of the state’s steel-manufacturing plants. The government has stated that the industry needs at least 40 million metric tonnes. The government has cited its deals with international steel-manufacturing units too to impress upon the SC the need to allow more mining.