The BJD on Friday supported the NDA Government for passage of Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) Amendment Bill, 2015 in the Rajya Sabha barring the Congress and the left which opposed and JD-U chose to stage a walkout.
The Government had brought this Bill as an Ordinance and the lok Sabha has already passed it. Now the Bill will go to the President for his consent which will convert it into an Act.
The Upper House which had witnessed a deadlock on Thursday rejected the motion moved by the CPI (M) to send the Bill to a Select Committee passed the Bill through a division with 117 votes in favour and 69 against. Apart from the BJD, the TMC, Samajwadi Party, Nationalist Congress Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party voted in favour of the Bill.
The BJD claimed that it supported the Bill in the interest of the State. With the passage of the Bill, all roadblocks have been cleared for auction of mines in the country. “We had objected since there was no provision in the Bill for funds for development of the areas where mining was to be undertaken. During the visit of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, we had raised this issue following which the Government considered our proposal and made an amendment in the Bill providing for such funds which will be highly beneficial for mineral bearing States like ours which will result in more revenue other than the 15 per cent royalty of the mineral extracted. We welcome the Bill,” said BJD lS Party leader Bhartruhari Mahtab.
