In April, the court ordered 45 mines to seek government nod to resume operations

The Supreme Court has allowed 18 mines to resume iron ore mining in Karnataka, the country's second-largest supplier, after a suspension of over a year on environment concerns, Justice Aftab Alam and Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai said on Monday. The output from the re-started mines will be in addition to state-run NMDC's 1 million tonnes per month, which was cleared by the Supreme Court for production from August 6, 2011.

The Karnataka government has initiated several measures to curb illegal movement and the possibility of pilferage of iron ore in the state. The move comes after the direction of the Supreme Court and the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) in the recent past.

In an affidavit submitted to the Apex Court last week, chief secretary of the state S V Ranganath has said that the Mines and Geology Department has introduced the e-permit system to curb illegal transport of iron ore.

For the steel ministry starved of iron ore supply, there is good news as the Supreme Court is expected to state on Monday as to how many mining leases in Karnataka, presently closed under Court ord

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.

It also objects to the classification of mines under Category A

Questions are being raised over the recommendation of the Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) allowing mining by 16 companies among which are those embroiled in alleged irregularities. The Samaj Parivartan Samudaya (SPS), petitioners in the illegal mining case in the Supreme Court, has taken exception to the CEC recommendations and to the classification of the mines under Category A (consisting of mines not linked to any irregularity).

Birds spotted by wildlife enthusiasts in remote village

A few months after Ramadevarabetta in Ramanagar district was designated the country’s first vulture sanctuary, wildlife enthusiasts have come across a large congregation of critically endangered vultures in a remote village bordering Bellary and Raichur districts. The team of wildlife enthusiasts comprising - Santosh Martin, Honourary Wildlife Warden, Bellary; K S Abdul Samad Kottur, a wildlife activist; local naturalist Anand Kundargi and budding naturalists and photographers Sunaina Martin and Sonia Martin – has discovered 16 long-billed vultures Gyps Indicus and four Egyptian vultures during their expedition to discover vultures in the remote parts of Bellary district.

Samaj Parivarthan Samudaya (SPS), the main petitioner in the public interest petition on illegal mining in Karnataka, has appealed to the Supreme Court for scrapping of all mining leases in Category ‘A’, which fall in the forest areas in the three districts of Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur.

In a submission filed to the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) of the Supreme Court, in response to the SC direction on August 17, 2012, the non-government organisation has appealed for the cancellation of mining leases in Category B and C and impose suitable fine on them.

Hospitals in the district have seen a sharp rise in the number of patients getting admitted with symptoms of dengue in recent days.

People in the thousands, especially children, are showing symptoms of dengue like high fever, cough, fatigue and body pain. Sixty five of the total 149 suspected dengue cases have tested positive and all the patients are undergoing treatment. Patients, coming in hordes from Bellary, Koppal districts and neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, are being made to lie on the ground at the Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS) in the city.