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An inter-ministerial committee of the Odisha government constituted to formulate a long-term ore linkage policy for local industries expects to submit its report soon.
"The ministerial panel has heard the views of all stakeholders. We have discussed the pros and cons of the suggestions given by them. Our report will focus on a wide range of factors like availability of ore and its pricing. By the end of this month, we hope to submit the report," said Prasanna Acharya, finance minister and chairman of the inter-ministerial panel.
It may be noted that the committee's mandate is to suggest measures for making iron ore, manganese ore, bauxite and chrome ore available to to the mineral-based industries located in the state. The mineral ores will be made available in a fair and equitable manner through the state mine PSU Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) and other mining lessees.
Besides, the committee will suggest modalities for making the ore available on a sustained basis to such industries through appropriate long-term ore linkage arrangements. It will also suggest a framework for making the ore available to local industries through a transparent process.
