'State covered up mining fraud by MLA'

The Supreme Court appointed Central Empowered Committee(CEC) has not only indicted BJP MLA (Hospet) Anand Singh’s firm SB Minerals, but also found that the State government attempted to hush up the matter.

Four companies including Singh’s were found to have encroached into a mine leased to the Baldota group’s BRH mines in Sandur taluk. The CEC concluded that as per  a report submitted by Additional PCCF Deepak Sarmah, there was no doubt that massive illegal mining had taken place in the forest area by these firms.  

Using satellite images, the CEC found that in 2003, a small area beyond the common boundary between SB Minerals and RMML was under mining, with some forest cover. In 2010, the area under mining is seen to have increased substantially, and the corresponding forest cover has disappeared.

Cover up

More brazenly, the government attempted to hush up the matter when Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh asked the State government to conduct a joint survey. Sarmah found that not only did the joint survey team ignore the original sketches, but it also ignored the lease boundary marked by the Lokayukta in 2008.

On the lease sketches prepared by the joint survey team, the CEC notes that “practically all the forest areas wherein illegal mining and encroachment was earlier stated to have  been taken place fall within the respective mining leases, implying thereby that no illegal mining has taken place”.

The CEC adds: “It practically legalises all the illegal mining that has taken place in the forest area”. The committee not only rejects the basis of the joint survey, but  asks for a thorough investigation about the authenticity of the team’s methodology.
Harassment

The CEC has also indicted the Forest department for its ‘intentional non-action’ in processing the forest clearance for RMML. The latter was awaiting a compliance report from the State government in order to get a clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF).

The CEC held that by not submitting the compliance report, the State government had ensured that RMML would not be allowed possession of the lease area, and consequently facilitated continuation of massive illegal mining by Singh’s firm. Eventually, the Union government has given clearance under the Forest Act, though the State government  registered its protest last month.