A total of 29 mineral blocks with a combined estimated resources of Rs 1.56 lakh crore have been auctioned so far, the government said on Monday.
"As on date, 29 mineral blocks with an estimated total value of resources of Rs 1,56,746 crore have been auctioned in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Rajasthan," Mines Minister Piyush Goyal said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
Till March 31, a total of 21 mineral blocks have been auctioned. The estimated total value of resources of these mines is Rs 93,190 core, he said, adding that eight more mineral blocks have been auctioned subsequently.
He further said 11 mineral blocks are proposed to be auctioned in Chhattisgarh, nine in Jharkhand and seven in Odisha.