The Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC) on Wednesday said a ban on iron ore mining in Chitradurga and Tumkur districts would be the last nail in the coffin of Karnataka’s steel industry.
A Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) had last Friday recommended extending the mining ban in Bellary to two other major iron ore producing districts in the state.
“It will be a big blow for the steel sector as there is no other option than closing down the plants completely. The companies will either have to reduce production significantly or close down due to non-availability of iron ore,” said a statement issued by the BCIC.
The committee’s recommendation, if considered by the Supreme Court, would leave 80,000 workers jobless and affect the livelihood of over 100,000 people, apart from causing revenue loss to the exchequer, said BCIC.
Last month, the court had imposed a blanket ban on mining in Bellary district in Karnataka following allegations of widespread illegal mining in the largest iron ore producing state in India after Orissa. India produces 218 million tonnes of iron ore annually. The southern state alone accounts for over 21 per cent or 45 MT of the total output.
The Supreme Court had later partially lifted the ban by allowing state-owned miner NMDC to produce one million tonne every month from its mines. “It is essential that at least the mines where CEC found no or minor irregularities should be allowed to start mining operation on a priority basis,” BCIC said.
The industry body also demanded commencing supply of usable ore from the 25.8 MT of iron ore stocks found by the Supreme Court panel during its survey of mining leases in the region as a temporary relief for the domestic steel industry.
