The Joda mining circle under the state steel and mines department has issued show cause notices to 42 iron ore and manganese mines lease holders over last two weeks in excess raising cases and has urged them to take steps to return the amount of money they have gained by selling the excess mineral raised.
It had sent notices to around 20 miners in August this year on the same charges. In the second phase, the government has picked up 42 more miners this month, including Aditya Birla Group company controlled Essel Mining, Tata Steel and state-run miner Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC).
In August 2010, the state government had constituted a six-member committee headed by Director of Mines to investigate into cases of miners who had extracted ore in excess of Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) endorsed mining plan. The committee had found that 104 miners of iron ore, manganese ore, bauxite and chromite had lifted excess mineral over and above the limit permitted by IBM.
By the end of November, probably all the 104 offenders would be served the notices, a trade source said.
The state government initiated the process of price recovery for excess mineral raised in July this year, after the IBM and the Union mines ministry shifted the blame for not taking any action against the errant miners on the state machinery.
The state steel and mines department had asked the state Director of Mines to instruct all mining circle heads to send 30-day notices to all such miners regarding payment of the mineral prices raised beyond permitted quantity.
It had even included a provision that in case of delay in payment, the lessee shall have to pay penalty at the rate of 24 per cent per annum on the sum due.
