Panaji: The state cabinet on Thursday allocated an additional 1 lakh tonne of iron ore to Sesa Resources Ltd for export, with the company paying Rs 15.4 crore at Codli.
Bombay High Court Dismisses PIL on Mining Dump Policy
The Bombay High Court dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Goa Foundation challenging a provision of the Goa Mining Dump Policy. The court held that mining dumps are generated due to mining activities carried out under approved mining plans. “Therefore, it must be presumed that the lease holder has already paid royalty with regard to the iron ore, if any, contained in the dumps,” the high court stated.
“Under such circumstances, the plea of disposing of the dumps, through a fresh process of auction, in our considered opinion, does not hold to reason. Rather, we are of the view that the mechanism prescribed under Clause 2(2) of the Policy of 2023 is not only fair and transparent but the same also adequately addresses the economic concerns of the state,” said the division bench of justices Suman Shyam and Amit Jamsandekar.
Court Acknowledges Environmental Concerns
The court further stated that “the question of conserving the natural resources in Goa, bearing in mind the issues of sustainable development and intergenerational equity, is a very serious issue having great public importance” and appreciated the efforts of Goa Foundation in highlighting such issues of public importance, which led to significant judgments and directions passed by the Supreme Court.
Background of the Case
Goa Foundation filed the PIL challenging Section 2.2 of the policy for regulating iron ore dump handling, arguing that the state cannot hand over large quantities of ore to former miners without securing the best price through a transparent auction process. The company purchased the dump through e-auction. When they were handling the ore, they found that it was excessive, and they informed the authorities. The mining company requested the state government to allocate the additional ore.
E-Auction Process
Through the directorate of mines and geology, the state government has been conducting e-auction of extracted ore lying in Goa on an ‘as-is where-is’ basis, as directed by the Supreme Court. A total of 31 e-auctions were conducted, wherein 13 lots of extracted iron ore were put up for auction at various locations in the state.
One of the lots put up for e-auction was located at Codli, Dharbandora, wherein the total quantity was 1.2 lakh tonne, consisting of three stacks of 80,000 tonnes fines, 30,000 tonne lumps and 15,000 tonnes (ROM). The approximate grade of the lot was 45.4% iron, which was calculated as a weighted average of the grades of the three stacks. The base price for the lot was Rs 402 per tonne. Sesa Resources Ltd was the successful bidder for the lot, and the same was won for Rs 1,542 per tonne.
