SAIL gets Jharkhand govt's nod for Chiria mines

Chiria mines is estimated to have nearly 2 bn tonnes of iron ore with ferrous content of over 62% 

Public sector undertaking Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), the country’s largest steel producer, could soon acquire four pending mining leases in Chiria iron ore mines of Jharkhand, union steel minister Virbhadra Singh said today.

“The government of Jharkhand has finally responded positively to a long standing request of this ministry and has issued orders for accepting the change in the ownership of the Chiria leases from IISCO to SAIL,” Singh said today. The ministry will make concerted efforts in the next hundred days to ensure that the requisite formalities are completed for settling all the pending issues in favour of SAIL. 

Chiria mines is estimated to be possessing nearly 2 billion tonnes of iron ore with ferrous (iron) content of over 62 per cent. Iron ore supply from Chiria mines would be vital for the steel major expand its capacity to 26.13 million tonnes from the current 13.82 million tonnes. The iron ore rich mine is also being eyed by private firms like Arcelor Mittal which has proposed steel plant in Jharkhand.

Of the 10 mining leases that SAIL had in Chiria and Gua regions following the acquisition of erstwhile Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO),  renewal of four is facing dispute while six others have got extension. Earlier Jharkhand government had maintained that the leases belonged to IISCO and cannot be transferred to SAIL.

On disinvestment in companies under the steel ministry, the minister said, “If a policy of disinvestment is approved by the government, we have some companies in mind”.  He, however, declined to specify the companies in which disinvestment might be pursued.

The minister, however, ruled out any immediate plan to impose anti-dumping or safeguard duty on steel imports from China. “If the situation warrants, we will take appropriate action,” he said.