The special investigation team (SIT) appointed by the Union government to find out black money traces has begun its work in the state by asking data related to illegal mining.
Arijit Pasayat, vice chairman of the SIT, today met state mines secretary, mines director and officials from income tax and sales tax department to discuss about the revenue leakages and find out the offenders.
The team is directing its investigation primarily against offenders in illegal mining cases, based on reports submitted by M B Shah Commission of inquiry related to Odisha. Justice Shah is currently heading the SIT on black money.
The SIT has asked the officials of Odisha government to submit data related to mineral exploration and exports between 2000 and 2010. It has also asked the local income tax officials and central sales tax officials to provide mineral sales transactions data to reconcile with state government data and to find out the offenders. In the third volume of second report on Odisha illegal mining, after scrutinising 23 iron ore leases allotted to 14 miners, the Shah Commission had said CBI inquiry must be started against companies such as Essel Mining, Sirajuddin and Co, Indrani Patnaik, Sarada Mines, Aryan Mining, M L Rungta, Mesco, Kalinga Mining Corporation, Ram Bahadur Thakur, S N Dasmohapatra and four other small miners.
These companies were found guilty of illegal mining, excess production, violation of Rule 37 of Mineral Concession Rule 37 (subletting of lease), and evading crores of rupees in terms of income tax and sales tax payment, the report had said. One of the primary of source of black money is showing lower prices for mineral sales to avoid higher payment of royalty and sales tax as they are linked to sale prices. The other method is to inflate cost of excavation and minimise profit margin in order to avoid income tax and other dues.
Difference between approved amount of extraction and actual amount of dispatch from mining pit head also leads to avoidance of tax payments and is a source of black money too.
The SIT believes illegal mining could be the primary root of generating black money in the backdrop of lax attitude of the state government. It is also investigating similar cases in Goa to find out cases of tax avoidance.
