the goan I network
PANAJI
A delegation of mining dependents led by the leader of the Goa Mining People’s Front Puti Gaonkar called on Union Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar to impress upon him that the only solution to Goa’s mining woes was an amendment in the Goa Daman and Diu Mining Concessions (Abolition and Declaration as Leases) Act, 1987.
In a memorandum submitted to the Minister, Gaonkar explained the Section 2, of the Abolition Act which was passed in 1987 and which brought Goa’s mining concessions granted in perpetuity by the Portuguese government, under the legal ambit of the Indian Mines and Minerals Development Act from December 20, 1961.
“Instead, it is necessary to make the Abolition Act with prospective effect -- from March 22, 1987 the day the Act was enforced by issuing an ordinance,” Gaonkar explained.
For his part, Narendra Singh Tomar promised to promptly act upon any representation he receives from the State government through official channels, with reports that the State government is preparing a resolution to be tabled before the upcoming session of the Goa Legislative Assembly to amend the Abolition Act.
Gaonkar’s demand is crucial because, if changed, it will extend the validity of Goa’s mining leases and overcome the impediments of the Supreme Court order of 2014 which declared Goa’s mining leases as expired in 2007.
“Under the colonial mining laws, titles of concessions were granted in perpetuity and were recognised as a patrimonial right. Concessionaires paid the government a fixed tax depending on the area of the mine and a proportional tax dependent on the gross amount of mineral extracted… After liberation the Union government made several unsuccessful attempts to cancel the concessions… and in 1983 a court order restrained the union government from enforcing the notification and treating the concessions as leases,” Gaonkar said.
He said the amendments were necessary to save the livelihood of about 3-lakh mining dependent people and also “save the age old industry which was the backbone of the Goan economy.”
Gaonkar, in his memorandum, claimed that the Goan mining industry contributed to over 20% of the state’s GDP and directly employed about 60,000 people.
“We (GMPF) are representing all people dependent on Goa Mining Industry including permanent and temporary employees of mines, associated trucking industry, barging industry, iron ore related trade and associations at ports, spare part shops and workshops, eateries, tea stalls and other allied businesses in the mining belt that coexists due to mining industry,” he said.
