Facing the adverse impact of a ban on mining in the State, the Goa Government has told the Supreme Court it was willing to introduce competitive auctioning of mining leases subject to legal permission for the same.
The Government informed this in an affidavit filed before the apex court yesterday. “The Government is not averse to the mode of going for competitive auction of the mining leases in Goa, subject to the law permitting the same,” Mines Secretary R. K. Verma told the court.
The Government has submitted the affidavit as a rejoinder to a petition filed by NGO Goa Foundation against illegal mining in the coastal State. The NGO has demanded a total ban on mining activities in Goa and implementation of the Justice M. B. Shah Commission’s report on illegal mining.
In an interim order on the petition in October last year, the SC halted mining operations in Goa and formed a committee to investigate illegalities in the operation of iron-ore and manganese mines in the State.
“As a matter of principle, the State Government is of the opinion that distribution of natural resources of any kind must always be by auction or tender which can earn the highest revenue,” the affidavit noted.
The State Government has sought dismissal of the NGO’s petition stating they are in a position to take action against all illegalities in the mining sector.
The Government has assured that anyone found guilty of committing irregularities would be punished and the leases of erring mining companies would be cancelled.
“Appropriate penal action would be taken against such persons and mining companies, whose leases would be cancelled or revoked if found guilty of irregularities,” according to the affidavit.
The State earns Rs 1,000-crore revenue annually from mining, a sector still governed by decades-old rules as the existing leases were given to the owners when the Portuguese ruled over Goa, a top exporter of iron ore.