Cuttack: National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Tuesday extended its ban imposed on mining of minor minerals in Mayurbhanj district due to the absence of a final district survey report (DSR) approved by the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA).
DSR is prepared to identify the mineral resources for mining activities along with other relevant data.
NGT's east zone bench in Kolkata imposed the indefinite ban in an interim order on Aug 8 while hearing a petition filed by Bibekananda Pattnaik, a Baripada-based social activist. The petitioner sought intervention against the issuing of an auction notice for sand mining in Budhabalanga riverbed on a five-year lease. The Budhabalanga sand bed-1 in Belonapura, Madhunanda and Demphouda of Betonati tehsil, spread over an area of 4.98 hectares, has a geological reserve of 56,809 cubic metres.
Authorities were going ahead with the auction process for finalisation of the grant of lease for the sand bed on the basis of an interim DSR. But the report was not accepted by SEIAA, the petition alleged.
SEIAA's affidavit in reply to the petition was placed before the tribunal on Tuesday. "Taking note of the affidavit, the bench of B Amit Sthalekar (judicial member) and Arun Kumar Verma (expert member) fixed Jan 10 for further hearing on the matter and extended the interim ban till then," petitioner's counsel Sankar Prasad Pani said.
In the interim order, the tribunal had said, "We direct that no mining activity shall be carried on in Mayurbhanj district under the interim district survey report (DSR) until further orders."
In the affidavit placed before the bench, member secretary of SEIAA, Prem Kumar Jha, said, "The DSR of Mayurbhanj district is yet to be approved by SEIAA."
The dispute centres around the contention that a final DSR is mandatory before granting any mining lease or issuing of tender. In its absence, the auction notice issued on June 20 is not sustainable.