State govt seeks to charge ex-leaseholders extra premium too to handle ore dumps

Panaji:State govt has decided to collect an additional premium from erstwhile leaseholders, besides royalty and other applicable fees, while granting permission to handle dumps.
“I say that for dump applications, which will be considered for grant by state govt, state govt will collect premium along with royalty and other applicable fees from the erstwhile leaseholders,” Narayan Gad, the director of the directorate of mines and geology, said in an affidavit filed with the high court in the dump handling policy matter.
Goa Foundation, an NGO, has challenged state’s dump handling policy in the HC.
Gad said that the policy was formulated after considering all relevant aspects, particularly in terms of the report of the expert committee, pursuant to the order dated Dec 13, 2022, of the apex court.
“I say that only one category has been allowed to remove the dumps where the following conditions are attracted and complied with, viz. where the dump is on private land, where the leaseholder has paid the fine in terms of Section 33(1A) of the Land Revenue Code, where conversion fees have been paid in terms of the 2013 policy, where the inventoried dump is depicted on the mining plan, upon payment of royalty, removal to be within five years or such further period as may be notified and upon compliance of all statutory requirements,” Gad said.
Gad went on to say, “The policy is consistent with the recommendations and suggestions of the expert committee. I say that no fault can be found with such policy which has considered all the relevant aspects. I say that the petition is without any merit.”
He said that in the judgment in the Goa Foundation case, Supreme Court held that the deemed renewal period of leases in Goa expired on Nov 22, 2007, and all mining by the lessees after that date was illegal.
The court also held, he said, that dumping of minerals outside the lease area was not permissible. The court made reference to the e-auction of the ore and the quantity of ore auctioned in terms of the order dated Nov 11, 2013, overseen by the monitoring committee.
“I say that in relation to such inventoried ore, the court held that only the average cost of excavation of the ore would be paid to the mining lessees and certain other amounts would be paid on other heads, and the balance amount would be appropriated by state govt as the owner of the ores,” Gad said.
He said that in relation to the dumps, there was no such direction of forfeiture and appropriation by state govt. The court inter alia directed the expert committee to submit its report within six months on how the mining dumps in Goa would be dealt with.
“I say that the expert committee accordingly submitted its report dated April 12, 2015, to Supreme Court on the aspect of dump handling,” Gad said.