At least five to 10 mines out of the 36 mineral blocks in the State would be auctioned in July, said Steel and Mines Minister Prafulla Mallick on Saturday.
Speaking on the sidelines of a seminar organised by mining associations here, Mallick said, “In 2020, around 24 mines will be closed, but we have already prepared plans to auction those mines so that our production is not hampered.”
He further said that five to 10 blocks, out of the 36 mineral blocks which are ready for mining operations, would be auctioned in July.
On the coal royalty issue, the Minister said the Centre is yet to consider Odisha’s demand for revision of coal royalty.
“The Coal Ministry has been appraised regarding our demand. Even Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hike the coal royalty. We hope the Centre would take a decision soon,” Mallick added.
