Ministry of Mines Secretary Balvinder Kumar on Tuesday advised the State Government to execute mining lease deeds before time so that they would not lapse.
He informed this to reporters after reviewing progress of about 60 mining leases with meeting Chief Secretary AP Padhi and concerned Government officers here.
‘I met the Chief Secretary to discuss about 60 cases where mining lease deed is to be executed. As all leases will expire on January 11, we want that the lease deeds are executed. We had called mining owners to the meeting. They explained the cases. The State Government should give priority on these cases. We don’t want these cases lapsed because of inaction at any level,’ said Kumar.
He too said that two other cases pertaining to the Nalco and relating to water charges payment dispute of Damanjodi and Angul Nalco were reviewed. Hopefully, that matter will be resolved soon, said Kumar.
Responding to a query why auction of mines has gone slow in Odisha, the Union Secretary said, ‘The State Government has identified two to three more blocks and is going to issue notices very soon. We’re requesting all the States to expedite the auction. So far, 17 blocks have been auctioned in the country, and we want 20-30 more blocks’ auction this year. The Odisha Government has promised to expedite auctioning of identified blocks. We’re hopeful.’
