 "Comprehensive approach needed to sustain growth of mining industry")
To sustain growth of the mining industry in the country, there is a need for a comprehensive approach so that the potential benefits of the sector are realised, according to the Minister of State for Steel & Mines, Vishnu Deo Sai.
Inaugurating the Assocham conference on mining in Odisha yesterday, Sai said minerals are indispensable in the modern society and mining activities enable access to the much needed minerals. Mining industry is one of the core sectors and is a barometer of overall health of the economy and industrial output. A vibrant mining industry is a bedrock of any industrial nation particularly when it is endowed with huge mineral potential as in the case of India. The rationale extends to Odisha which is one of the major states in India, both in terms of mining output and industrial production.
However, mining in India is beset with uneconomical scale and limited mechanisation & automation. T K Chand, chairman, Assocham National Council on Mines and Mineral, and CMD of Nalco, said, “Mining in India has tremendous potential to grow manifold. For actualisation of this potential mining has to be done scientifically conforming to sustainability parameters to unleash benefits to the people.”
While the industry has come a long way in terms of technology upgradation and modernisation, there is still lot of potential left for improvement. It is apparent in terms of the average size of mines in India, safety standards and overall viability of mines. The number of mines which reported mineral production - excluding minor minerals, petroleum (crude), natural gas and atomic minerals - in India was 3318 in FY2015 as against 3722 in the previous financial year. Of the 3318 reporting mines, 173 mines were located in Odisha. The average size of the mines in Odisha is equally small as in the other states in India. While it is understood that this assessment is dependent on the mineral (for example, gold vs coal) and the underlying geology, the fact cannot be done away with that India needs to take decisive steps towards modernisation of its mining industry.
According to Prafulla Kumar Malik, Minister of State for Steel and Mines, Odisha is also the first state in the country to issue rules for the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) - a body created to bring far reaching changes in India’s mining regulations, MMDR Act. The new rules however, raised some concerns as they have failed to define any role for the mining companies who are among the major stakeholders and will be significantly impacted by the operations of the new regulations. While declined in mineral production has been the general trend in the country, faster decline in the state warrants a closer look at the state specific issues affecting mineral production in the country.
As per the recent amendment of MMDR Act, 2015, the transfer of mineral concessions will be allowed only for concessions which are granted through auction. However, there is no provision for transfer of mining lease and prospecting licenses (captive mines) which were allocated earlier on first come - first serve basis.
The National Mineral Policy recognises that extraction of mineral closely impacts other natural resources like land, water, air and forest. The areas in which minerals occur often have other resources, presenting a choice of utilisation of the resources. Some such areas are ecologically fragile and some are biologically rich. It is necessary to take a comprehensive view to facilitate the choice or order of land use keeping in view the needs of development as well as needs of protecting the forests, environment and ecology.
Prevention and mitigation of adverse environmental effects due to mining of minerals and repairing and re-vegetation of the affected forest area and land covered by trees in accordance with the latest internationally acceptable norms and modern afforestation practices needs to form an integral part of mine development strategy in every instance.
Stressing that Odisha has immense potential if it can leverage its mineral resources effectively and with urgency, Abhijit Pati, CEO - Aluminium Business, Vedanta Ltd, said, “The need of the hour is to have a better mining governance by attracting the best in mining with state of the art technology, knowledge and skill set. We have to negate the notion of ‘Prosperity underneath and poverty above’ in context of Odisha.”
