Respond to plea for lower mining cap, SC tells Goa - The Hindu

OTHER STATES

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The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Goa government and mining companies to respond to a petition seeking to lower the cap on extraction of mineral ores in the State from the current 20 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to a final 12 MTPA.

The apex court asked the State and the companies to file their responses to the petition filed by NGO Goa Foundation, represented by advocates Prashant Bhushan and Pranav Sachdeva.

The petition said the Expert Committee on the CAP (ECOC) has recommended in its final report for an enhanced extraction of mineral ores from 20 million tonnes to 30 million tonnes. “Interim cap on extraction of mineral ores from Goa, recommended by the ECOC, was fixed in a vacuum, when mining had been suspended for several years. It was not fixed after confronting actual mining operations, when started, and their impact on people and environment,” the petition said.

It said the present cap is subject to review as it is clear that “even 20 MT mineral extraction is deleterious to public health and environment”. The petition said the State does not have the infrastructure to handle such levels of extraction.

A hearing has been scheduled for November 29.