New Delhi In a move that might speed up environmental clearances for mining firms, the Centre may ask the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) to independently verify compliance of norms suggested by the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) for all mining projects.

This is being done to ensure constant monitoring of projects during the execution and completion stages. The MoEF has already proposed the need for evolving an independent monitoring system to get a fair assessment of the project and also reduce chances of conflict between the ministry and project proponents.

The Centre has asked the Goa government to “immediately restrict” all activities regarding removal of minerals from dumps located outside the mining lease areas.

“The state government should immediately restrict all activities for removal of mineral from the dumps located outside the lease areas, till an appropriate mechanism is evolved and the Central government approval is obtained in mining plan on such dump removal activity," mines ministry has said in a letter to Goa government.

National Committee for Protection of Natural Resources (NCPNR), which is spearheading a campaign against illegal mining in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, on Thursday urged all stakeholders to work for the effective implementation of a recent Supreme Court order.

Addressing presspersons here, NCPNR president S.R. Hiremath said that the stakeholders, including government officials and regulatory bodies such as the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), petitioners, monitoring committee and the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), have to take the initiative in forcing mining lease holders to do legal and responsible mining.

PANJIM: Even as Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar threw down a gauntlet to Indian Bureau of Mines to close mines in Goa, Union Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) officials began inspection of mining leases in Goa, on Wednesday, ahead of Minister Jayanti Natarajan’s visit to the state next week.

Sources stated that eight officials, four from MoEF and four from Central Pollution Control Board are down in Ponda and have begun inspection of mines to verify whether mining dumps are being handled by mining lease holders without obtaining environment clearances (ECs).

States will benefit from ‘social licence’ mechanism, districts through the District Mineral Foundation in mining sector, said Vishwapati Trivedi, Secretary, Union Ministry of Mines.

Forest department to review progress and survey leases

The Central Empowered Committee has informed the Supreme Court that the reclamation and rehabilitation work has been initiated in as many as five out of 16 in the ‘A’ category of mines in Karnataka. In its latest report submitted to the Supreme Court, it said that the forest department had agreed to provide all help and review the progress, besides the survey of the mining leases.

The Supreme Court on Friday took a tough stand over the resumption of mining in Karnataka and asserted that unless it was sure that the reclamation and rehabilitation (R & R) steps are “hundred per cent” complied with, operations cannot be allowed.

“There is an assumption that operations can start and R& R will follow,” the Bench headed by Justice Aftab Alam observed. But it is a wrong assumption, the three-judge Bench clarified.

The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) has approved 16 iron ore mining lessees in Karnataka to resume operations, but has not permitted them to produce more than a third of their earlier annual sanctioned capacity.

These mines together have been allowed to produce 8.24 million tonnes (mt) per annum, as against their original sanctioned capacity of 26.48 mt.Sesa Goa, with sanctioned capacity of six mtpa, has been allowed to mine only 2.29 mtpa, about 38 per cent. It has a lease area of 163.5 hectares in Chitradurga district.

Odisha is set to voice its opposition to some of the contentious provisions in the Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Bill-2011 that the state government feels may undermine the federal structure of the constitution.

In May this year, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had shot off a letter to Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh complaining that the MMDR Bill sought to transfer certain powers and functions now being exercised by states to the Centre.

The federation representing merchant miners in the country claims stocks at mine heads reveal that there is no real shortage of iron ore, a key steelmaking ingredient.