Mining revenue up 52%

Orissa has overshot its mining revenue collection target in the April-September period of 2011-12. As against the targeted Rs 1,750 crore, the actual collection was Rs 2,241.29 crore.

This is 51.8 per cent higher than Rs 1,476.42 crore recorded in the corresponding period of 2010-11.

“Mining revenue collection has been buoyed by higher sales realization. Also, under-reporting of ore prices, especially iron ore, has been curbed to a large extent and now our prices compare favourably with pan-India average,” said a senior official of steel & mines department.

The month of September alone registered revenue collection of Rs 330.07 crore. Mining revenue is set to breach the Rs 2,500-crore mark by October-end. The state government had set a mining revenue collection target of Rs 4,000 crore for the current fiscal.

The Joda mining circle, the epicentre of the state's mining activity, has reported the highest collection at Rs 1,049.64 crore during April-September followed by Koira circle at Rs 358.22 crore.

The revenue collection recorded by other mining circles include Talcher (Rs 247.79 crore), Sambalpur (Rs 165.08 crore), Jajpur Road (Rs 196.20 crore), Koraput (Rs 37.73 crore), Rourkela (Rs 99.52 crore), Baripada (Rs 19.191 crore), Keonjhar (Rs 44.51 crore), Cuttack (Rs 9.35 crore), Berhampur (Rs 6.19 crore), Bolangir (Rs 4.20 crore), Kalahandi (Rs 46 lakh) and Phulbani (Rs 3.16 crore).