Industry update mining

The Forest Bench of the Supreme Court of India, headed by Chief Justice SH Kapadia, ordered the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) on August 5 to carry out an environment impact assessment of the effect of illegal mining activity on the ecology of Bellary, the centre of mining scam which toppled power circles in Karnataka. The report is to be submitted in three months and it is on the basis of this report the Supreme Court will take a final call on the Bellary mining case. The assessment took off on August 23 with the first visit of an inquiry panel to Bellary to collect base land data. The committee appointed by the Ministry of Environment and Forests has already started its work and its Chairman, VK Bahuguna, IFS, Director General of the ICFRE, realizes the sensitivity of the task at hand. Even though the issue is sensitive, Bahuguna's mandate "of not budging from the scientific pursuit in hand" is very clear in his mind. At the time of going to press, Bahuguna was at ground zero inspecting the mines in Bellary.

MINING IMPACT ASSESSMENT
In an exclusive interaction with Bureaucracy Today Bahuguna shares his initial inference on the ecological impact of what is pegged as the biggest mining scam ever. "We have examined the Gonda Reserve Forest and Vyasanakere in Hospet taluk of Karnataka and found most mining areas did not have the required 7.5-metre safety zone outside the mining area for afforestation. Some mines have not reallocated overburdens properly. We need to study the Indian Bureau of Mines plan to assess the extent of violations further. All owners were warned that their mines would be closed if they violated the laws. It will be premature to share more details on this as an assessment of many other factors is yet to be done."

But has the team reached any inference based on the data available? "No", pat comes the reply, saying that the team cannot judge on the basis of initial data, "…but I am trying to procure the Lokayukta report. Officers have informed me that since 2004, Rs 2.98 crores worth of iron ore has been exported illegally. Of which Rs 1.12 crores worth of iron ore was exported only last year. This is the extent of illegal mining in Bellary."

NOT TO BUDGE FROM SCIENTIFIC PURSUIT
Besides the scientific study, the team will also seek responses from various stakeholders. Wouldn't interacting with the stakeholders deviate from the scientific pursuit giving way to pressures from various quarters? Bahuguna snaps and denies it saying that "the entire process is going to be very fair and transparent." He considers it necessary as he says, "We are going there with an open mind. If we do not meet the stakeholders, we will not be able to take stock of ground realities and differentiate.We are committed to a very independent and fair auditing."

"This was our preliminary study. After the first visit we are going to plan a detailed macro level environmental impact assessment on scientific principles. The ICFRE institute in Bangalore is deputed to collected data," adds Bahuguna.

Bahuguna clears the air that the committee is already going with a mindset that the entire mining industry is illegal and says, "We are not opposed to mining but we are seeing that mining is done on scientific principles. Our motto is clear. We will go, study the topology and list the factors, if any, that led to ecological degradation due to mining. The next course of action is in the hands of the honourable Supreme Court."