Pleading that the interim report of the Justice Shah Commission inquiring the multi-crore mining scam in Odisha has little effect, the State BJP unit urged President Pranab Mukherjee for a CBI probe into the loot of the national wealth. BJP national vice-president and Jual Oram and former State spokesperson Ashok Sahu on Saturday called on Mukherji and submitted a memorandum seeking his intervention into the case.
While CBI had already undertaken investigation into the mining scam in Karnataka, Goa and Andhra Pradesh, in Odisha, the loot is continuing with impunity, they pointed.
They alleged that the national wealth was being looted by private parties in deliberate connivance with the Government authorities in Odisha in violation of the constitutional provisions, leading to a huge loss to the State exchequer.
They also expressed concern over the rising anger among the tribals due to the mining activities in the State. Stating that the manganese ores in Odisha being limited in quantity and only available in mostly forest areas, they urged that frittering away of the mines by any particular private parties needs to be prevented to ensue prudent and discriminatory exploitation of minerals so that the natural wealth is not allowed to exhaust within a few years.
While laws like Forest (conservation) Act, Environment Protection Act, Air and Water Acts, Prevention of Pollution Acts, etc are there, the Odisha Government had been indulging in indiscriminate and wanton denudation of forests and exploitation of mines, that too, in open violation of statutory provisions causing huge loss in terms of revenue to the public exchequer, they alleged. "This has happened particularly between 2000 and 2013, when there was high demand of iron ores in China and other international markets," they asserted.
They alleged that only 341 mines of the 596 leased out are operating in Odisha. Out of the 341 operating mines, 126 are subsisting mines and 215 are working under deemed extension. They pointed out that these mining operations are beyond the time period permitted by the lease and also in excess of the areas earmarked for such mining in the forest areas.
The SC appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) had also pointed out gross violation of law in mining operation in the State, they said, and added that certain mines are continuing operation even after expiry of the lease permission granted by the State Government, 20 to 25 years back. They also stated that the renewal of the lease period which requires prior approval by the Union Government has been avoided in clear violation of the law.
CAG and the Shah Commission in its interim report had also wondered how private parties like Triveni Earth Movers, despite not being bonafide lease holders, were operating mines violating Rule 37 of the MCR, 1960, they said.
The Commission has submitted an interim report concluding that there have been illegalities in mining operation in Odisha. Even despite the fact that the State Vigilance inquiry report had concluded that officers of the Mines and Forest departments were hand-in-glove, no punitive action had been initiated against the offenders, they lamented.
However, they regretted that though the purpose of submitting an interim report was to immediately and effectively stop the national loot that has deleterious effects on the national economy and the society, till date neither the State nor the Centre has initiated any action against the erring officials and the delinquent political persons and criminals after locating responsibility. "This is possible only after a CBI probe," they pleaded.