A ravaged earth and the long wait for relief

Iron ore mining has been the curse of Ballari. This single district in Karnataka was said to hold 25% of the country’s iron ore reserves and for more than a decade, it was plundered without check. But the average Ballari residents have not benefited from their land’s rich resources.

The National Family Health Survey (2015 - 16) shows that at least 72% of children in the 0 - 6 age group suffer from anaemia; the district stands 22nd in the state when it comes to the overall Human Development Index.

In September 2012, the Supreme Court had ordered the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) — later registered as the Karnataka Mining Environment Restoration Corporation (KMERC) in 2014 — to engage in the clean-up of and development of three mining-affected districts of Ballari, Chitradurga and Tumakuru following the “large-scale plundering of the environment and consequential socio-economic damage caused to this region by illegal mining.”

Since then, the KMERC has accrued funds worth Rs 25,000 crore through auctioning of leases for these illegal mines.

Also Read | A long haul ahead for the lives blighted by mines

A key issue here is the drawing up of the “Comprehensive Environmental Plan for Mining Impact Zone (CEPMIZ) which the apex court called “an essential part in the process of reclamation and rehabilitation of the area devastated by illegal mining.”

Since 2012, the state government has not succeeded in convincing the Supreme Court with its proposed plan of action.

While the state government and KMERC claim that the revival plan has been cleared by the Supreme Court appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC), the Samaj Parivartana Samudaya (SPS), the main petitioner before the court, and the Federation of Indian Mineral Industries — South (FIMI) have a different take.

In a nutshell, both the SPS and the FIMI-South say that the state government is trying to get clearance from the Supreme Court to use the fund for regular works which should otherwise come from its regular budget.

So far, the state government has submitted a plan of action before the Supreme Court on more than four occasions. In 2018, it proposed an outlay of Rs 24,995 crore in three categories — a socio-economic and development plan at Rs 17,165 crore, road infrastructure at Rs 2,559 crore and railway infrastructure (backbone) at Rs 5,271 crore.

In its order in March 2017, the Supreme Court had said that the entire CEPMIZ Scheme need not be approved in one go and approval may be considered and accorded in phases. The court said that it would wait until a more comprehensive report in respect of each of the broad heads on ameliorative and mitigative measures are proposed.

These proposals have been met by affidavits filed by the SPS, which maintains that there should be a greater allocation towards health, education and the environment.

According to S R Hiremath of SPS, the state government has been trying to mislead both the court and the people of the state. “The amount with the SPV (in 2012) was Rs 15,000 crore which has grown to almost Rs 25,000 crore now. That it is above and beyond the state government’s regular budget is crystal clear. Yet, the state government somehow includes one or the other new infrastructure-based works into the proposed action plan,” he says.

As an example, he points to the proposed railway line and the Rs 1,000 crore which the state government wants to use for land acquisition.

“The reason why we oppose the use of this fund for infrastructure work is that there will be large scale corruption associated with such works,” Hiremath said.

Hiremath says the restoration of the people’s health, revival of their agricultural land and in some cases, revival of animal husbandry-related activities needs more allocation of funds. In 2017, the state government had proposed spending Rs 410.94 crore on public health.

Low on human development

Dr T R Chandrashekhar, retired professor at Department of Developmental Studies in Kannada University, endorses this. He says, Ballari has a decent per capita income when compared to other districts but its human development index is way too low.

“Too much infrastructure will further widen this gap. Unlike the GDP, the human development index takes into account education, health and livelihood. Ballari needs serious attention towards issues like illiteracy, malnutrition, sex ratio and anaemia among children and women. There is also a large population of people from the SC/ST communities in Ballari, Chitradurga, Koppal and Raichur districts,” he said.

A study conducted by Prof Chandrashekhar on the socio-economic condition in the district in 2-15 -17 and came across some alarming facts — 36% of girls here were married off before reaching 18 years.

Specific objections

The state also requested clearance for the Detailed Project Report (DPR) prepared for railway sidings and sub-lines with a mutual consensus between KMERC and JSW group — which purchases about 70% of the iron ore produced in these districts — in respect of railway infrastructure for the three districts to support the mining activities In July 2020, the state government even sought the court’s permission to utilise the fund to tackle the Covid-19 crisis.

In its affidavit, the SPS has said that the request is against the SC judgment, which said that the fund should be utilised for the purposes for which it had been constituted.

The SPS has also stated that the urgency, cited by the state government, to develop healthcare sector in the three mining impacted districts should not rush the court into approving the entire CEPMIZ without giving due consideration to the key recommendations provided by the parties involved - CEC, the amicus curiae M K Jiwrajka (former member secretary of CEC), FIMI-South and the petitioners.

The SPS has said that the proposed railway lines (sub-lines, railway sidings in Chitradurga and Tumakuru and most of such projects in Ballari) are likely to be unproductive. According to SPS the proposed expenditure for road infrastructure of Rs 2,559 crore should not be cleared unless a report is available on the feasibility of linkage between the mining lease area and the end point based on the quantity of mineral.

FIMI-South Director H M Khayyum Ali said that except for a few proposals by the state government, the remaining have been cleared by the CEC. The FIMI had earlier stated that no part of the fund (with the KMERC) should be transferred to the Consolidated Fund of India.

It had stated that several socio-economic projects proposed by the state like tourism and infrastructural measures, laying of railway lines, setting up of industrial and medical infrastructure are to be executed in the course of normal governmental functions.

Demand for oversight authority

In the wake of the state government being unable to convince the Supreme Court on the proper utilisation of the fund, social activists are proposing an oversight authority, on the lines of the one constituted in Odisha by the Supreme Court.

In the recent affidavit, the SPS has stated that the state should not be blindly trusted to implement the proposed projects.

Hiremath also says that unlike in Odisha, where judges were appointed to the committee, the state government here wants the Chief Secretary and other bureaucrats to head the committee.

In response, the state government says it has no objection to setting up an oversight authority.

Prabhash Chandra Ray, Managing Director, KMERC, said that the state is moving an application before the Supreme Court requesting an early hearing to address all the issues. He also said that a detailed analysis of the plan of action may not be required if an independent authority were to be set up.

“Both the Amicus Curiae and the CEC have recommended the setting up of an oversight authority. If the Supreme Court appoints an oversight authority then the spending will be screened through it,” he said.