PANAJI
With over 140 iron ore dumps lying on forest land, the Goa government has urged the Centre to introduce policy reforms to facilitate the evacuation of legacy mining dumps located on land subsequently classified as forest. Union Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy has assured the State that he would personally take up the matter with the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
The issue was raised by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant during a review of Goa’s mining sector conducted by Reddy following the National Mining Ministers’ Conference in Goa. Sawant said existing forest-related restrictions were preventing the evacuation of several mining dumps, even though the material had been deposited on land that was not classified as forest when the dumps were originally created.
Land ownership
The Chief Minister clarified that the State was neither seeking ownership of the land nor any change in its legal status. “Once the dump material is evacuated, the entire land parcel will remain with the forest department. We are not going to make any claim over the land,” he told
Reddy.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Sawant said the State was seeking a supportive policy amendment at the central level to allow the removal of existing mining waste dumps from such areas.
“We have no intention of disturbing active forest areas or undertaking fresh mineral extraction in untouched forest zones. Everything will remain as it is. We believe in sustainable mining,” he said.
Auctioned dumps
He further said that approximately 40 million tonnes of mineral dumps spread across 20 parcels in areas including Sanguem and Dharbandora had been auctioned, but forest-related compliance issues were delaying their operationalisation.
Sawant said the evacuation of legacy dumps could provide a major boost to the State’s economy, industry and commerce over the next 20 to 25 years without disturbing existing forest ecosystems.
Centre’s assurance
Responding to the demand, Reddy assured that he would take up the matter directly with the Union Environment Minister and senior officials. He also indicated that, if necessary, the issue could be brought to the attention of the Prime Minister.
“The Centre will extend full cooperation to Goa in unlocking the potential of existing mining dumps, which contain substantial quantities of iron ore and could generate employment and economic activity. We will ensure that a meeting is scheduled with the MoEFCC Minister on the subject,” he said.
