INDIA
Backed by a new law that has given them a fresh lease of life, it's business as usual for miners accused of illegally extracting iron ore in a massive Rs.1 lakh crore scam
Mining giants who were accused of illegally siphoning off iron ore worth thousands of crores are back in business. And they are not flouting the law, but are actually being aided by it.
Accused of massive violations in a scam worth Rs.1.5 lakh crore, the miners have been aided by the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2015, enacted on March 27, 2015, and touted as a masterpiece of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's reform agenda.
Section 8A (clause 5) of the bill, originally pushed as an ordinance, allows the red-flagged miners to continue mining till 2030. The bill calls this 'deemed extension'. Those without captive mines have been allowed to mine till 2020.
According to government sources, miners have been allowed to mine till 2030 because they have made "heavy investments" in the sector. Most of the severely indicted miners including the big names like Rungta Mines Pvt Ltd, Tata Steel Ltd, Kalinga Mining Corporation, Aryan Mining and Trading Corporation, Bonai Industrial Company stand to gain from the government's new law.
While the ban on mining continues in 11 of 17 mines in Jharkhand, it has resumed in Goa, Odisha and Karnataka. In a few days, Karnataka and Odisha will be auctioning 15 and six iron ore blocks respectively. However, the mines of the companies that allegedly extracted ore illegally for decades will continue to remain in the same hands.
Of the 792 iron ore mines in the country, according to the Indian Bureau of Mines, 197 are working. Most of these are run by big miners accused of indiscriminate plunder, an official said.
Illegal iron ore mining, as pointed out by the central government appointed MB Shah Commission, is a scam of scary proportions suffixed with enough zeroes to eclipse all scams in India's history.
It's business as usual for the companies accused by the Shah Commission of rampant illegal mining without requisite clearances in India's iron ore rich belts. There are also other indicted companies, including Sarda Mines, Sirrajuddin & Company and KJS Ahluwalia, in the queue seeking permission to mine again after getting necessary environmental clearances.
"While amending the law, the government didn't take the past track record of these companies into the account. They robbed the state exchequer and now instead of punishing them, they have been rewarded," says Duskar Barik of the Keonjhar Integrated Rural Development & Training Institute (KIRDTI).
The Shah Commission and the Supreme Court appointed Centrally-Empowered Committee (CEC) have accused these companies of serious violations including corruption, under-invoicing, evasion of taxes, export duties and illegal transfer of mining leases.
"Punishing is a function of the government and it may come from either state or central government. But if you allow or permit illegality to go further forever then it would be tough to have democratic rule in government," Justice Shah told dna.
Calculating the loss
The Shah Commission had estimated that unlawful extraction of iron ore and manganese totals a staggering Rs.59,203 crore in Odisha alone.
Add the amount of iron ore plundered from states like Goa, Karnataka and Jharkhand and the scam tops Rs.1 lakh crore.
According to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's conservative estimate, illegal mining in Goa cost the state over Rs 4,000 crore.
The CEC had estimated that Karnataka had lost close to Rs.7,000 crore every year for a decade as miners continued to under-report iron ore extraction, paid pittance as royalties and brazenly avoided paying taxes to the government.
In the states
In Goa, where mining was resumed earlier this year, companies like Vedanta-owned Sesa Goa and VS Dempo are back to mining. Others like Salgaocar, Chowgule, Timblo have also been allowed to mine till 2020 without any restriction or penalties imposed on them. The Shah Commission had detailed how all these miners enriched themselves by exporting more iron ore, primarily to China, than they were showing as actual production.
The report pegged the loss from the illegal exports between 2000 to 2010 at Rs.2,747 crore and suggested recovering this amount from the miners with an interest rate of 24 percent. The report also noted that none of the miners had paid royalty to the state government for the iron ore that they were exporting. This cost the state exchequer Rs.2,756 crore.
The money is yet to be recovered from any of the companies and many have resorted to legal suits to avoid paying the amount. The Commission had also pointed out that these miners were producing far more than the limits imposed on them by their respective environmental clearances.
The scale of the 'big Indian loot' in Odisha, which accounts for over a half of India's iron ore production, is even bigger. Miners like Sarda, Tata, SAIL, NMDC, Rungta, KJS Ahluwalia and Usha Martin – have been accused of causing huge losses to the state through illegal mining. Many of these companies have taken the legal route against the decision to penalise them.
Rattled by the Shah Commission report, Jharkhand shut down 12 of its 17 iron ore mines in 2014. One of them, Tata Steel, managed to get a reprieve from the Jharkhand High Court for its mine at Noamundi and resumed production earlier this year. It has been estimated that the scale of illegal mining in Jharkhand exceeds Rs.20,000 crore. Other companies like Rungta MIning Co and public sector behemoth Steel Authority of India (SAIL) still continue to mine in the Sarandha forests of Jharkhand.
Rungta was allowed to quadruple its production under the previous UPA government despite the fact that it did not have necessary environment and forest clearances for its Ghatkuri mines in the pristine Sarandha forests of Jharkhand. The Shah Commission recommended recovering Rs.14,403 crore for illegal iron ore mining in addition to Rs.138 crore for illegal manganese mining in Jharkhand from a handful of companies in the state.
In addition to Rungta, the Commission has also questioned the environment clearance given to brothers Naveen and Sajjan Jindal's companies Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) and JSW by former minister Jayanthi Natrajan in 2013.
The CBI, which is probing the managements of both companies as well as officials of the environment ministry, is yet to to file a preliminary enquiry report or register FIRs. The CBI, it is learnt, suspects that the process of granting Stage 1 approvals to both Rungta Mining Ltd and JSPL in addition to Usha Martin Ltd were fraught with corruption.
"It is disappointing that one goes scot-free despite being indicted by several inquires. The errant companies have been allowed to mine again without paying any penalties or fines imposed on them," said Rabi Das, a petitioner in the SC who is credited with exposing the scam in Odisha.
Emails to most of the companies mentioned in this article went unanswered.
All set for vote counting in Jharkhand tomorrow; NDA, JMM-led alliances confident of winning
Watch: Australia star inquires Rishabh Pant about his next IPL team, gets 2-word reply
Shah Rukh Khan’s house Mannat was first offered to his industry rival…, but he refused because...
The Visionary Who Promises a Blue Sky for India: Holger Thorsten Schubart’s G20 Climate Speech
The Surge of High-End Living: Luxury Residential Market to Outpace Other Segments
FeFCon 2024 to be Held in Bangalore: A Premier Event on Fever Management
London Airport evacuates passengers over security threat, thousands stranded
The World’s First Innovative Iron Supplement to Combat Iron Deficiency and Anaemia
Meet grandmother who became fashion icon after trying on her granddaughter’s clothes
IND vs AUS: Rishabh Pant joins Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma in elite WTC list, becomes 3rd Indian to...
'All scripted drama...': Puneet Superstar allegedly assaulted by influencers in viral video, watch
Actress Ana de Armas caught kissing Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel’s son in viral photos
Oreshnik's Shadow: Will Russia's hypersonic missile force west to back down?
‘You’re So Beautiful’: World’s tallest woman meets world’s shortest woman over tea, pics go viral
Delhi-NCR Air Pollution: Consequences of GRAP-4 are drastic, may have adverse effects, says SC
Delhi-NCR Air Pollution: Schools likely to stay closed till..., check city-wise update
Maharashtra: 3 killed, 9 hospitalised after gas leak at fertiliser plant in Sangli
THIS farm is selling a cup of coffee for Rs 28000, but there's a twist, it is...
Chhattisgarh: 10 Maoists killed after encounter with security personnel in Sukma
Mukesh Ambani's SUPERHIT plan for Jio users, offers unlimited 5G access for 1 year for just Rs...
IND vs AUS 1st Test: KL Rahul's dismissal sparks DRS controversy in Perth Test
Dense fog, heavy rain predicted in these states till November 25; check here
Oreshnik Hypersonic Missile: Which nations are within its range?
Bihar teacher, principal reach school in drunken state; know what happened next
'I have faced a lot of...': Arjun Kapoor REVEALS his biggest fear amid break up with Malaika Arora
How millions of Indians may get affected due to US indictment of Gautam Adani in bribery case
Amid divorce rumours with Aishwarya Rai, Abhishek Bachchan says 'missing someone is okay but...'
After Bibles, watches and sneakers, Donald Trump is now selling autographed guitars, price is...
Delhi pollution: Air quality improves to ‘very poor’ category, AQI at...
Vladimir Putin's BIG threat, warns he could strike UK with new ballistic missile if...
Shillong Teer Results TODAY November 22, 2024 Live Updates: Check winning numbers here
Somebody misbehaved with Alia Bhatt on Highway sets then Imtiaz Ali had to...
Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal reveals twist behind Rs 200000 job fee, closes application window
Days after Ratan Tata's demise, Tata Group's Rs 131000 crore company inks pact with ADB for...
WATCH: Woman makes Biryani with Parle-G biscuits, viral video fumes internet
Only train in India in which passengers can travel for FREE; check route, timings and more
'Justice for biryani': Parle-G biryani takes internet by storm, video goes viral
DNA TV Show: Why Gautam Adani charged with bribery and fraud in US
IND vs AUS: Records Virat Kohli can break during Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Diljit Dosanjh fans get angry over Ananya Panday's birthday post for her grandmother, here's why