Australia pins hope on MMDR Bill

The Australian High Commission is pinning its hopes on the Odisha government and the Centre's new Mines & Minerals (Development & Regulation) MMDR Bill to pave the way for revival of its mining giant- Rio Tinto's iron ore mining project in the state.

The mining behemoth was to take up the $2 billion project jointly with state controlled miner- Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC). However, of late, OMC's reluctance to revive the project seemed to have queered the pitch for Rio Tinto.

"We talked about the joint venture project and the broader outlook on the mining sector including the legislation (MMDR Bill) pending at the Centre. The chief minister indicated that the state government is looking into it. Obviously, some of the project's scrutiny will be influenced by the Bill”, Australian High Commissioner to India Peter Varghese said after meeting chief minister Naveen Patnaik.