Survey mapping to be revamped to check illegal mining

To streamline the mineral administration and check illegal mining activity in the state, the Orissa government plan to upgrade the survey mapping being done by various departments.

The government has decided to use the latest survey technology, reconcile the differences in the methods adopted by various departments, digitise the maps with the technical assistance of Orissa Space Applications Centre (ORSAC) and build computer data base among others. The proposed measures are expected to help in checking the illegal mining activities, sources said.

“We intend to streamline the survey mapping of areas with adoption of latest technology and digitise mapping so that any illegal mining activity can be detected even from far away”, Ashok Dalwai, secretary, steel and mines department of Orissa government told Business Standard.

Dalwai said, survey methods adopted by various departments differ, giving rise to error in demarcation of a particular area. The problem is more in the forest areas where the illegal mining takes place. While cadastral survey is adopted by revenue and disaster management department, in certain cases theodolite survey is also being done.

He said, it has come to the notice of the government that taking advantage of the error, the mining lease (ML) boundary is manipulated by the lessees.

Some lessees are also mining beyond the surface rights area granted by the concerned district collector. In case of deemed renewal extension also, the lessees are only allowed to take up mining in non-forest land. But some lessees are doing mining in the forest area which is illegal.

To detect the areas of illegal mining and possible violation of boundaries by the lessees, the steel and mines department has started a preliminary exercise to upgrade the survey mapping process. This was discussed in a meeting with the senior officials of revenue and disaster management, survey and settlement, Orissa Space Applications Centre (ORSAC).

Sources said, illegal mining has been going on at different stages like mining operations, storage and transportation.

Once the proper survey mapping is done using the digital map, these illegal activities can be detected even from the state headquarters.

The revenue department is reported to have stated that it has chosen 4 districts for conduct of high tech survey including Keonjhar district, which can be useful for detection of illegal mining in the area.

However, one more round of discussion will be held with these departments along with the Orissa Computer Application Centre (OCAC) to finalise the plan.

The approval of the government will be obtained before the plan is implemented. It may be noted, the chief minister Naveen Patnaik is insisting on the modernisation of storage and transportation system in the mining areas of the state.