Tabling of the long pending Mining Bill and expediting grant of environmental clearances as well as funds infusion which will enhance investors’ confidence in the sector and help revive it, are some of the key priority areas needing immediate remedial action which the Mines Ministry has highlighted before Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In a presentation made by Mines Secretary Anup Pujari before Modi at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on June 27 – a day after the BJP Government completed a month in office – the need for strengthening the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) and Geological Survey of India (GSI) was also underlined in order to realise the full potential of the mining sector.
According to sources, the presentation meeting, called by the Prime Minister to get an idea of what are the bottlenecks as well as significant areas which need to be resolved in order to fast track policy initiatives across sectors, also included briefings conducted by Secretaries of all the ministries.
Pujari is said to have conveyed to Modi that fast tracking pending environmental and forest clearances of various mines within the current fiscal could be augmented by using e-platform for management of mineral concessions (mining leases).This, the ministry in its presentation before the Prime Minister, said, could be done by using GSI’s on-line Core Business Integrated System and IBM’s Mining Tenement System. Usage of this technology, the ministry claimed, will simplify the long winding procedure of seeking leases.
Issuing of leases either through first-come-first-serve basis or through auction route, is another issue which the Mines Ministry wants to discuss before the Mines Bill is introduced afresh in Parliament.
The Pioneer had last week reported that the ministry is keen to seek comments from various stakeholders, mainly states, on this matter before moving ahead with the legislation. The Mining Bill has the provision of auctioning leases, however in the aftermath of the 2G scam the then UPA Government had stopped issuing leases.
The NDA Government wants to discuss this aspect with State Governments and in the presentation to the Prime Minister, it has said that interaction with them should “start immediately”. The UPA Government could not present the Mining Bill in Parliament during the 15th lok Sabha as the Standing Committee had listed various amendments in it.
The ministry also wants to revise royalties within three months, as the report of the study group set up by the Mines Ministry in 2012 to suggest upward revision in royalties of various minerals has been lying on the back burner.
The panel had suggested a hike in royalty of various minerals like iron ore, however these are yet to be implemented, even though royalties are meant to be revised after every three years. The last hike was effected in 2009. This paper had reported how this issue is also part of the Mines Ministry’s 100 days agenda.
Harnessing proven reserves, exploration for additional resources and improving monitoring of mines were highlighted by the ministry as significant challenges faced by the sector, in the presentation before the Prime Minister.