JAIPUR: In an effort to curb unsafe mining, the state government has decided to conduct training in mines safety in the 19 silicosis-affected districts. The training to lease holders will be imparted by the department of mines and geology in collaboration with the director general of mines safety (DGMS).

The department of mines and petroleum has recently issued a notice to the director of mines and geology department asking it to prepare a schedule for such a training programme in co-ordination with the DGMS and to intimate the same to all mining lease holders in the state. The department's orders follow the intervention of the Mine Labour Protection Campaign (MLPC).

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested former deputy conservator of forests (Bellary) S Muthaiah and former deputy director of mines and geology department (Hospet, Bellary) S P Raju in connection with an illegal mining case involving the Associated Mining Company (AMC).

The AMC is owned by former tourism minister Gali Janardhana Reddy and his wife Aruna.Muthaiah and Raju have been named accused number seven (A-7) and accused number 22 (A-22) in the case.

The coal ministry has issued revised guidelines for preparing mine closure plans, incorporating a few stringent provisions.

Mine owners would now have to open escrow accounts with scheduled banks, with the Coal Controller’s Organisation (CCO) as an exclusive beneficiary. When the final mine closure scheme is implemented by the owner five years before the scheduled closure of operations, the CCO may permit withdrawals from the escrow account proportionate to the quantum of work carried out, as reimbursement. The withdrawn amount every year should not exceed 20 per cent of the total amount deposited in the account.

New Delhi Keen to stay clear of the minefield of scandals and lawsuits, the Union mines ministry has asked the attorney general (AG) whether mining lease applications can be disposed of under the first-come-first-served (FCFS) policy, until upcoming legislation makes auction mandatory.

The ministry's concern is that granting mineral concessions through FCFS policy might attract strictures from the Supreme Court and run afoul of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India's stated position on the matter.Over 400 pending mining lease/licence execution cases are waiting for the ministry's no-objection certificate, before states can process the lease.

A perennial nightmare for the residents of the State's coastal belt, that of mineral sand mining, is back again. This time, with a bureaucratic prop. And, the first lot to get the jitters are those living along the shores of Alappuzha, particularly the mineral-rich Thottappally stretch.

It is a series of letters from the Indian Rare Earths (IRE) Limited, Chavara; the Chief Engineer in charge of the Rs.1,840-crore Kuttanad Package, Alappuzha; and then from the office of the Chief Engineer (Irrigation and Administration), Thiruvananthapuram, to the Principal Secretary (Water Resources) that have triggered the tension this time around.

Plans $2 b investment in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha projects

Undeterred by the continued economic downslide in the West and the crisis in the eurozone, Australian mining and iron ore giant Rio Tinto has embarked an ambitious but exciting expansion and growth project with an investment of $15 billion over the next five years in new mines and port facilities to meet the demand from emerging markets such as China and India.

Move to ease pricing pressure on ferrochrome and stainless steel players.

PANJIM: The leases of 89 operational mines, working on deemed leases would be renewed by end of May with State Government in process of imposing revised rates of Stamp Duty.

A stamp duty of Rs 1 lakh per hectare is likely to be imposed on the mines for renewal. As per the Mines and Minerals Regulation Development (MMRD) Act, which is under amendment, States have the power to increase stamp duty on mining leases if the royalty payments exceed the levels assumed at the time of the lease.

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.