SC shuts 133 mines in Karnataka

Mining was stopped in as many as 133 mines in Karnataka, including 93 in Bellary, on directions of courts on account of environmental hazards, Mines Minister Dinsha Patel told the Lok Sabha on Friday.

Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, Patel said according to provisional figures 10,304 workers have been affected due to the closure of mines in Karnataka. He said mining was stopped in 157 mines in Rajasthan which had affected 600 workers.

As many as 87 mines have been shut in Haryana, 64 in Madhya Pradesh, 10 in Goa and two in Tamil Nadu, Patel said. “In terms of the policy directions in the National Mineral Policy, 2008, the

Government has drafted a Sustainable Development Framework (SDF) for the mining sector to facilitate its more sustainable development,” he said.

He said a legislative backing for the SDF was proposed to be incorporated in the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Bill, 2011, which is presently under finalisation.

The SDF has seven core principles which include incorporating environmental and social sensitivities in decisions on leases, strategic assessment in key mining areas, and managing impacts at the mine level through sound management systems.

It also includes addressing land, resettlement and other social impacts, community engagement, benefit sharing and contribution to socio-economic development, Patel said.