Illegal mining in State ruined farming

Rampant illegal iron ore mining in Chitradurga and Tumkur districts has caused severe damage to agriculture and horticulture activities, as well as spreading of mining related diseases among the people of the region, a study has found.

 
The micro-level environmental impact assessment study conducted in the two districts by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) also expressed concern over large-scale damages due to violations of environmental norms.

It recommended financial compensation from mine owners for the damage caused to the environment and stringent action against the guilty companies.

The study was conducted on the direction of the Supreme Court hearing cases of illegal mining in Karnataka. The ICFRE, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, has already submitted its environmental study report on Bellary district.

“There has been a decline in productivity of agricultural crops up to 40 per cent in both Tumkur and Chitradurga districts when mining areas are compared with the non-mining areas,” the report says.

The study report, a copy of which is available with Deccan Herald, says unbridled mining has resulted in loss of around 8 sq km of forest in both the districts.