Union Cabinet May Give Nod To Mining Ordinance Today

The Union government is likely to promulgate an ordinance on the pending Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2014.

A note on the mining ordinance was circulated to various ministries stating that the “concerned central ministries/departments can submit their comments on the proposal in the meeting of the Cabinet itself considering the urgency involved.”

One of the reasons given for issuing the ordinance was: “If the problems facing the mining sector are not addressed immediately, it will have far-reaching impact on the economy of the country as the manufacturing industry largely depends for raw material supply on the mining sector.”

The ordinance proposes a district mineral foundation (DMF) in every district affected by mining, "to earmark funds for the benefit of persons affected by mining and for the rebuilding of infrastructure in affected areas."

As per a media report, the mining Bill “talks about directly giving a mining lease in the case of notified minerals and a prospecting licence-cum-mining lease for non-notified ones.” The Centre said that it had enough data for the notified minerals and it would give the mining leases without any reconnaissance permits (RPs).