India's largest iron ore miner Navaratna company NMDC is now on a shopping spree. It has been traversing the continents looking for precious mineral assets for use in India for some time now. As a part of this effort, NMDC has tied up with the Russian steel producer Severstal.

The Lokayukta report recorded how the miners rigged every rule in book and encashed the 'China boom'.

Economists divided factors of production in four categories - land, labor, capital and entrepreneur. Anything that goes into production can be put in any of these four categories. Land is the primary factor of production since all natural resources fall in this broad category.

Profit sharing by mining firms might open an window of innovative accounting, says the author.

It is for the politicians to act and prevent merchant miners, national or international, to play further havoc with the rich mineral assets of the country.