'Illegal miners in Goa should not be allowed to resume ops'

In its report to SC on Friday, the Central Empowered Committee suggested tough measures against the lessees, dimming the chance of the court lifting its October 5 ban on mining

The Central Empowered Committee (CEC) of the Supreme Court has recommended that mining lessees involved in illegalities should not be allowed to resume operations in Goa till a decision on the compensation payable by them is determined, complied with, and implementation of a rehabilitation plan is completed.

In its report to the apex court on Friday, the panel suggested tough measures against the lessees, dimming the chance of the court lifting its October 5 ban on mining and transportation of iron ore and manganese by 90 companies. According to another suggestion, the committee said environmental clearances for mining in forest lands might be directed to become operative only after the approval under the Forest Conservation Act. Till then, environmental clearances should be kept in abeyance.

The committee wants a direction to the Goa government that extraction of minerals from the overburden dumps located outside the approved mining lease areas should not be permitted till an environmentally sustainable scheme of mining is prepared.

According to the committee, a survey and demarcation of all the mining leases need to carried out in the state by a team constituted by the court, to ascertain the details of the areas under illegal mining pits, illegal overburden dumps and illegal roads.

Another suggestion is the involvement of a reputed agency such as the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, to prepare a lease-wise plan for reclamation and rehabilitation of the environment. In April 2012, the court had approved the guidelines for preparation of rehabilitation for mining leases in Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur districts in Karnataka.

That model may be followed.

The bench headed by Judge Aftab Alam, which received the CEC report, did not pass any order and will take it up only the next month. Since one of the three judges in the “green bench”, Swatanter Kumar, is retiring this month, the report as well as the environment cases will be heard by a new bench of the Supreme Court. Justice Kumar is tipped to become the president of the National Green Tribunal.