Goa mining: SC reserves order on iron ore extraction cap

The apex court says it will pass the order in a few days and the cap will be subject to the final report of the expert panel

The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its order on putting an annual cap on the volume of iron ore to be extracted in Goa, which has been banned in the state for nearly a year and a half.

The apex court said it would pass the order in a "few days" and the cap will be subject to the final report of the expert panel. "Whatever (cap on mining) we decide in the judgment will be subject to the final report of the panel," a bench, comprising justices A K Patnaik, S S Nijjar and F M I Kalifulla, said.

The bench also said it won't go into the policy matter and would only address the regulatory aspect involved in it.

The expert panel has recommended to the Goa government forming a mining corporation or a public sector company in view of illegalities by private miners. "We have to balance between sustaining environment and economic growth," the bench observed.

Senior advocate Harish Salve, assisting the court as amicus curiae in the case, read out portions of the expert panel report that was submitted in the apex court on Wednesday.

To a question what will happen to money received from e-auction of iron ore if it decides to cancel mining licences in Goa, Salve suggested the money should go to the state government after giving a 'normative cost' of mining to miners.

The expert panel, appointed by the Supreme Court, on Wednesday submitted its reports, recommending that for the time being, iron ore mining of up to 20 million tonnes (mt) annually be allowed in Goa.

The report suggested it was not 'desirable' to start fresh extraction of iron ore.

The panel said there is a 'large-scale degradation' of eco-system in Goa by mining and the restoration needs timely monitoring and recommended creating a "permanent fund" for the purpose.

On e-auction of iron ore till now, the committee said about 1.62 mt of iron ore had been auctioned in two rounds till now and approximately Rs 260 crore realised from it.

The apex court had on November 11, 2013 allowed e-auctioning of nearly 11.48 mt of extracted iron ore lying unused in Goa for over a year after it halted mining operations in 90 mines there.

The apex court, which had on October 5 last year stopped mining, transportation and export of iron ore in Goa following a report of irregualrities by the Justice M B Shah Commission, also ordered setting up of another six-member panel asking it to file its report by February 15, 2014, suggesting the annual cap on the volume of iron ore to be extracted.

The six-member panel has one representative each from the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Department of Mining besides "an ecologoist, a geologist, a mineralogist and an expert on forest."