<p> Bengaluru: Hoping to fast-track its proposal to mine on 1,200 acres of forest in Ballari district, KIOCL has agreed to some of the government’s conditions and the Supreme Court-appointed central empowered committee’s directions of handing over revenue and forest land in Chikkamagaluru district.</p>.<p>The company had in 2019 sought 1,196.17 acres of land in Swamimalai block forest in Devadari hill range of Sandur, Ballari.</p>.<p>Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre said that KIOCL has to pay a penalty of Rs 1,349.52 crore and hand over 3,300 acres of land to the government after which the government would clear the Ballari proposal.</p>.<p>KIOCL shut its mining operations in Kudremukh, Chikkamagaluru district, after a Supreme Court order in 2006 over concerns of environmental damage. Among the illegalities committed were the raising Lakhya dam’s height.</p>.<p>Documents show that during a meeting with the forest department, KIOCL agreed to the CEC’s directions. With regard to handing over 3,014.75 acres of land to the revenue department, it was noted that 1,657.4 acres have been mutated in the name of the Forest Department and the remaining 1,357.3 acres were yet to be mutated with encroachment cited as one of the reasons.</p>.<p>KIOCL chairman-cum-managing director Ganti Venkata Kiran agreed to transfer the company’s 282.44 acres of land to the Forest Department “before obtaining the working permission” to mine ore in Devadari hills. The department, however, rejected his request to accept the existing KIOCL buildings in Kudremukh at book value of Rs 25.02 lakh. Officials pointed to an earlier decision that said the buildings and other infrastructure at Kudremukh were “not in good condition and are of no use” to the department.</p>.<p>“CMD (M/s KIOCL Ltd) has agreed to handover all the buildings at zero book value to the forest department, subject to confirmation by the board,” it said.</p>.<p>KIOCL also agreed to obtain forest clearance approval and wildlife clearance for 973.15 acres, including 840 acres submerged for illegally raising the height of the Lakhya dam. This will involve compensating for the submerged/damaged land by providing alternative land. The CMD agreed to pay a transit fee of nearly Rs 10 crore for transporting iron ore.</p>.<p>With regard to other dues of land and penalty, the department deferred to the government. “It was decided that the final call on all the dues and other compliances would be taken by the government of Karnataka,” it said.</p>.<p>To a question, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Forest Conservation) Mahesh B Shirur noted that the revenue land was given as compensatory afforestation (CA) land. “We are not getting revenue lands directly. These are lands that are mutated in compensation for taking forest lands for development projects,” he said.</p>.<p><strong>Focus on Devadari</strong></p>.<p>The Devadari project involves felling of 99,330 trees in “thick and dry deciduous forests” home to leopard, bear, wolf, jackal, antelopes and other animals. The site inspection report by the DCF had listed a rich variety of flora.</p>.<p>The forest department opposed the proposal but the government overruled it. The then principal chief conservator of forest (head of forest force) Punati Sridhar had flagged the disproportionate harm caused to the ecology of the area. “The forest area in question is with excellent biodiversity of about 300 types of medicinal plants and well ground trees with rare, endangered and threatened wildlife. These are unique and rare in best quality forests in the eastern plains, which are otherwise very dry, barren and very hot and which have a bearing significantly on the rainfall in the surrounding areas,” he had said.</p>.<p>Sandur-based activist Sreeshaila Aladahalli said they have demanded a comprehensive assessment of the mining’s impact on the landscape by the government. “There are enough remnants of forests to provide a baseline on the condition that existed before largescale mining commenced. We need a picture of that, which will be placed against the damage caused during the rampant illegal mining. Only then we can say whether the current regulations over mining are sufficient,”he said.</p>
<p> Bengaluru: Hoping to fast-track its proposal to mine on 1,200 acres of forest in Ballari district, KIOCL has agreed to some of the government’s conditions and the Supreme Court-appointed central empowered committee’s directions of handing over revenue and forest land in Chikkamagaluru district.</p>.<p>The company had in 2019 sought 1,196.17 acres of land in Swamimalai block forest in Devadari hill range of Sandur, Ballari.</p>.<p>Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre said that KIOCL has to pay a penalty of Rs 1,349.52 crore and hand over 3,300 acres of land to the government after which the government would clear the Ballari proposal.</p>.<p>KIOCL shut its mining operations in Kudremukh, Chikkamagaluru district, after a Supreme Court order in 2006 over concerns of environmental damage. Among the illegalities committed were the raising Lakhya dam’s height.</p>.<p>Documents show that during a meeting with the forest department, KIOCL agreed to the CEC’s directions. With regard to handing over 3,014.75 acres of land to the revenue department, it was noted that 1,657.4 acres have been mutated in the name of the Forest Department and the remaining 1,357.3 acres were yet to be mutated with encroachment cited as one of the reasons.</p>.<p>KIOCL chairman-cum-managing director Ganti Venkata Kiran agreed to transfer the company’s 282.44 acres of land to the Forest Department “before obtaining the working permission” to mine ore in Devadari hills. The department, however, rejected his request to accept the existing KIOCL buildings in Kudremukh at book value of Rs 25.02 lakh. Officials pointed to an earlier decision that said the buildings and other infrastructure at Kudremukh were “not in good condition and are of no use” to the department.</p>.<p>“CMD (M/s KIOCL Ltd) has agreed to handover all the buildings at zero book value to the forest department, subject to confirmation by the board,” it said.</p>.<p>KIOCL also agreed to obtain forest clearance approval and wildlife clearance for 973.15 acres, including 840 acres submerged for illegally raising the height of the Lakhya dam. This will involve compensating for the submerged/damaged land by providing alternative land. The CMD agreed to pay a transit fee of nearly Rs 10 crore for transporting iron ore.</p>.<p>With regard to other dues of land and penalty, the department deferred to the government. “It was decided that the final call on all the dues and other compliances would be taken by the government of Karnataka,” it said.</p>.<p>To a question, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Forest Conservation) Mahesh B Shirur noted that the revenue land was given as compensatory afforestation (CA) land. “We are not getting revenue lands directly. These are lands that are mutated in compensation for taking forest lands for development projects,” he said.</p>.<p><strong>Focus on Devadari</strong></p>.<p>The Devadari project involves felling of 99,330 trees in “thick and dry deciduous forests” home to leopard, bear, wolf, jackal, antelopes and other animals. The site inspection report by the DCF had listed a rich variety of flora.</p>.<p>The forest department opposed the proposal but the government overruled it. The then principal chief conservator of forest (head of forest force) Punati Sridhar had flagged the disproportionate harm caused to the ecology of the area. “The forest area in question is with excellent biodiversity of about 300 types of medicinal plants and well ground trees with rare, endangered and threatened wildlife. These are unique and rare in best quality forests in the eastern plains, which are otherwise very dry, barren and very hot and which have a bearing significantly on the rainfall in the surrounding areas,” he had said.</p>.<p>Sandur-based activist Sreeshaila Aladahalli said they have demanded a comprehensive assessment of the mining’s impact on the landscape by the government. “There are enough remnants of forests to provide a baseline on the condition that existed before largescale mining commenced. We need a picture of that, which will be placed against the damage caused during the rampant illegal mining. Only then we can say whether the current regulations over mining are sufficient,”he said.</p>