Karnataka is among seven states selected by the Union Water Resources Ministry for the World Bank-aided National Groundwater Management Improvement Scheme (NGMIS) on a pilot basis.

Cauvery basin to get real-time water flow monitoring system.

The Centre has decided to expedite the task of mapping of aquifers for better management of water as groundwater is depleting fast due to over exploitation.

In a move to expedite construction projects in the country by making raw material more procurable, the Centre has decided to permit state governments to increase sand mining area in dry river beds

TN opposes K'taka's move to build hydel reserviours across Cauvery

Even though the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha has raised objections to Karnataka’s plans to construct hydel reservoirs across the Cauvery river and modernise canals within its territory, the final award of the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal does not prevent the State from constructing any new projects within its boundary.

Iron ore mining is set to resume on a full scale in Karnataka with the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) recommending that all lessees under A and B categories be permitted to restart mining operations.

The panel, in its recommendations to the apex court, has said that all the leases under category A can be permitted to excavate ore. The apex court, on September 3, 2012, had permitted resumption of mining for 18 of the 45 leases in category A. With CEC’s latest recommendations, the remaining 27 will resume operations.

Jailed mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy and his associates virtually ruled the roost in Bellary district in 2008 and 2009 when iron ore mining was at its peak.

The CBI, which is probing the illegal iron ore mining activities in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, has said that “Reddy, who was then Tourism minister and also minister in charge of Bellary district, wielded considerable political and muscle power and thereby made forceful entry into the mining leases owned by somebody else and indulged in extracting iron ore and transporting it.”

Expert panel says effective checks and balances in place to ensure work in scientific manner

Iron ore mining in Karnataka is set to restart with the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) on Thursday giving the green signal to ‘A category’ of mines in the State to resume operations, provided they have all approvals in place. In the report submitted to the apex court, the panel said a system of effective checks and balances has been put in place to ensure that mining takes place in a scientific manner. A total 18 mines come under category A, which recorded least irregularities or no irregularities, and of which one mine has all the approvals required.

The State-run National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) and Russian steel maker Severstal are likely to sign a final agreement to set up a steel plant in Bellary by the end of this year.

“Both companies have appointed legal consultants to study the project structure, and based on inputs, both firms will sign an agreement,” N K Nanda, Chairman and Managing Director, NMDC, told Deccan Herald on Thursday.

The illegal mining scam has not deterred mining companies from making a beeline for Karnataka. Over 19,000 applications seeking permission to excavate ore in the State are pending with the government.

Data compiled by the Union Ministry of Mines shows that of the 42,535 pending applications seeking permission for mining in various mineral-rich states in the country, (as on April 19), more than 45 per cent (19,351) of them are pending in Karnataka alone — the highest in the country.