Retain ownership of iron ore, green activist tells Goa government

With the Goa government getting ready to resume iron ore mining in October, environmental activist Claude Alvares, fighting illegal mining in the State’s private sector in the Supreme Court, has urged people to join a movement for a “Goechi Mati (Goan soil) Permanent Fund.”

“The proposed fund is based on the suggestion of the Supreme Court to safeguard people’s interest in exploitation of natural resources; it will safeguard this enormous wealth and ensure it is used in the best possible way for Goa’s citizens and future generations,” said Alvares, Director of the Goa Foundation.

Alvares, along with environmentalist Madhav Gadgil, DD Kosambi Visiting Research Professor of Goa University was, on Friday, speaking at a symposium on “Prudent Mining” at the International Centre, Goa.

Gadgil, who headed the Western Ghats Ecological Experts Panel (WGEEP), suggested mining in Goa through cooperatives as an alternative option.

Massive illegalities

He asserted that this needs to be explored as private sector mining and exports in the State have been marred by massive illegalities and loot of the exchequer as pointed out by Justice (retd) MB Shah’s Rreport on Goa’s mining, which eventually led to a ban.

The report estimated the loss to exchequer at round ₹35,000 crore, suggesting detailed investigation and action against the culprits, which is yet to take place.

For instance, villagers of Caverm (a mining village in South Goa) have approached the government with a request to allow them to run the mining leases in their area through a cooperative, but the government has been sitting on their proposal, he revealed.

Gadgil cited the success of cooperative movement in 1950s by Maharashtra farmers that proved successful in the sugar sector in this regard.

During the course of the symposium, Alvares slammed the BJP-led government in Goa for the second renewal of 88 iron ore mining leases recently. He accused the government of “not learning any lessons from its past mistakes” and “allowing iron ore extraction by those who had left the State in such a stage of turmoil that the industry had to close down for the past three years.”

‘Retain ownership of ore’

Opining that operations in the mining industry can resume tomorrow, Alvares appealed to the State government to retain the ownership of the ore, recruit companies to extract the ore and then sell it.

He questioned the wisdom to lease out iron ore to private sector players for nothing, when the best way to earn revenue could have been to auction them.

Gadgil further said if the government wants to resume mining, it should ensure that natural capital, human capital and social capital is built along with material capital (mining resource). Meanwhile, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said the Union Minister for Mines has been requested to look into the issue of allowing iron ore rejects to be dumped outside the lease area, thereby removing the hurdle in resuming mining by giving effect to the further required amendment in the MMDR Act, 2015.

Currently, it does not include the legislative provision to allow dumping of iron ore rejects outside the lease area.

Mining was halted for almost three years following a ban by the Supreme Court on a public interest litigation filed by Goa Foundation.

Even though the ban has since been partially lifted by the Court by putting a cap of 20 million tonnes of extraction annually, mining is yet to resume.

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