PANAJI
The attorney of the Navelim Comunidade, Gajanan Parab, in a complaint addressed to the Chief Secretary and Mines Secretary recently has sought a government probe into multiple issues related to alleged illegal extraction of iron ore by the Damodar Mangalji mining firm in its property.
Apart from the illegal extraction of ore, the attorney of the Comunidade has raised issues of the company building several unauthorised structures without its consent. Also, the company has retrenched from its employ all villagers and 'components' of the Comunidade, he added.
Several other issues were raised in the complaint by Parab which include contesting the Company's claims of producing several million tonnes of processed ore from lease areas which were allegedly "not worked on".
Parab has also claimed in the complaint that adjacent properties of villagers and also components were damaged allegedly due to activity of the mining firm.
Earlier too in October, a local citizens group headed by one Shyamsundar Naik had filed a complaint against the same mining firm alleging that an approximately one-lakh tonnes of iron ore was illegally extracted.
Naik's complaint is being perused by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Crime Branch which is tasked with the responsibility of investigating the illegal mining scam.
