Shah Commission asks for info on 29 more mines

The illegal mining investigator Justice MB Shah Commission has asked the state government to provide the survey and demarcation maps of 29 more iron ore and manganese mines in the state.

“Out of 195 mines, the Commission has received the survey and demarcation of 148 mines. As mentioned in the group plan of existing mining leases of Keonjhar and Sundrgarh districts map this Commission has not received survey and demarcation of 29 leases,” Sudhir S Shah, registrar of the commission, said in a letter to the state steel and mines department.

“You are requested to provide survey and demarcation of the remaining mines immediately,” he added.

After inspection of illegal mining activities in Odisha during its six-day visit late last year, the Commission had asked for demarcation of the reference point in respect of each iron and manganese leases in the state. It had directed the state government to conduct proper survey to find out whether the lessee is operating within the granted area or has transgressed beyond it.

In the meantime, the Union government has extended the tenure of the Commission by one year till July 16, 2013. The panel, constituted in November 2010 to probe the issues of illegal mining, was to submit its report within 18 months from the date of its first sitting.

As the commission needed more time to collect and compile information on mining from seven mineral producing states such as Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and Madhya Pradesh, the Cabinet has approved its extension.