Apex Court Stops Operation In 19 Bellary Iron Ore Mines
Dhananjay Mahapatra | TNN
New Delhi: The BJP government of Karnataka accepted an environmental panel's damning report and recommendations on rampant illegal mining in Karnataka and the Supreme Court on Friday stopped operation in 19 iron ore mines in Bellary district.
After the Central Empowered Committee's April 17 report accused the B S Yeddyurappa government of not acting on Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde's report on illegal mining, petitioner NGO 'Samaj Parivartan Samuday' through counsel Prashant Bhushan sought immediate suspension of operation in 19 mines.
Amicus curiae A D N Rao pointed out from Karnataka government's affidavit that the state accepted the CEC's recommendations and has promised to take steps to curb the menace of illegal mining.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice S H Kapadia and Justices Aftab Alam and K S Radhakrishnan needed no more persuasion to pass the order suspending mining operations in the 19 leased areas in Bellary district.
The CEC had cited Bellary as the hotbed of illegal mining in Karnataka but avoided naming mining magnates and ministers G Janardhan Reddy and G Karunakar Reddy in its report.
Though it did not name the Reddys, it presented a scary picture by telling the court that each and every bureaucrat in the district allegedly colluded with the representatives of the people in furthering illegal mining.
The state government said steps had already been initiated towards curbing illegal mining and top officials of Bellary district had been transferred, which was confirmed by the CEC.
"Some steps have finally been initiated by the state of Karnataka to check illegal mining. The most important one being the recent transfer of the deputy commissioner, Bellary, deputy conservator of forests, Bellary forest division, superintendent of police, Bellary and director, mines, as they had brazenly colluded with the mine lease holders," the CEC said.
"Earlier when an attempt was made to shift them, it resulted into a serious political crisis in the state," the CEC had said.
However, it said, "It is imperative that the subordinate staff holding sensitive positions are also simultaneously shifted out something which unfortunately is yet to happen."
"It is recommended that Karnataka should be directed to assess the quantity of mineral extracted by each of the mining lease holder from the area outside the approved lease area. An amount equal to five times the normative market value of such mineral may be directed to be recovered from the respective lease holders as exemplary compensation," it said.
This report on Karnataka illegal mining supplements CEC's report on illegal mining in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh. The CEC had indicted three mine leases owned by Reddy brothers for encroaching into adjacent Bellary reserve forest.
DAMNING REPORT
Even though Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde submitted a report on illegal mining, the B S Yeddyurappa govt did nothing about it
Now the State has promised to take steps to curb the menace
CEC tells court that allegedly every bureaucrat in Bellary district has colluded with representatives of the people in furthering illegal mining
The report supplements CEC's report on illegal mining in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh
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