PANAJI
The Supreme Court of India has permitted the Goa government to handle iron ore dumps, the State Advocate General has said.
Dump handling was banned by the Supreme Court back in 2014 pending a report by an expert committee which was asked to report to it on the feasibility of dump handling.
“The Supreme Court has permitted us to handle dumps. As a result of which we will be able to now deal with those dumps in accordance with law. That is a good relief for the State of Goa. We will be able to generate a lot of revenue for the State of Goa,” Adv Devidas Pangam, said.
“That policy, the government can have it at any time. There is one policy in place. We are going to see whether that policy is in the interest of the public or not and then based on that we will have to take a call,” he added.
The issue of whether dumps can be handled was pending before the Supreme Court which had prohibited handling the dump materials until it finally decides the issue.
The report submitted by the Expert Committee to SC including observations regarding allowing dump workings was pending before the SC and as such all the dump material could not be touched till the issue was finally decided.
In December last year the Goa government had finalised a dump mining policy, which Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said would allow the State to move tons of low grade ore scattered in several age-old dumps.
“The State government has formulated a policy for regularisation of mining dumps on government and private land and related issues. Those who were valid lessees and who had paid the money to the government (as a penalty for illegally dumping on government land), will be allowed to export,” Sawant had said.
Back in 2013 the Government of Goa through an amendment in the Land Revenue Code had allowed those who had illegally dumped rejects outside the leases to ‘regularise’ their dumps by paying a penalty. A total of Rs 200 crore was collected back then.
The Chief Minister had said that the policy is in tune with the Government of India policy which allows for the disposal of “overburden or waste rock mineral below the threshold value and which is generated during the course of mining or beneficiation of minerals or any minor mineral extracted along with the mineral for which the lease is granted.”
