Central govt. has fixed the DMF contribution at 30% of royalty for existing mining leases and 10% of royalty for new leases.
Indian govt. yesterday (17 Sept’15) announced the launch of Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) as a measure to support the project affected people, using the funds generated by District Mineral Foundations (DMFs).
The contribution has been fixed at 30% of royalty for existing leases (those executed before 12 Jan’15) and 10% of royalty for new leases (those executed after 12 Jan’15). Thus, the mines who are to be auctioned sometime during Oct & Nov’15 will attract DMF of 10% of royalty. However, the central govt. has yet not notified the date of submission of DMF by the miners. SteelMint spoke to few miners but they are not aware of date of execution. A Odisha based miner shared that DMF will be applicable on retrospective basis (i.e. from 12 Jan’15). However, no clarification has been given by the government on the same.
Notification of DMF will lead to a marginal increase in mining cost of around INR 50-100/MT. Odisha merchant miners are already facing pressure from the state govt. to boost production and dispatches, because of which prices have witnessed reduction in past 20 days by around INR 850/MT.
Minister of Mines and Steel, Narendra Singh Tomar said, “PMKKKY is a revolutionary and unprecedented scheme of its kind which will transform the lives of people living in areas that are affected directly or indirectly by mining.”
The objective of PMKKKY scheme will be
- to implement various developmental and welfare projects/programs in mining affected areas that complement the existing ongoing schemes/projects of state and central governments;
- to minimize/mitigate the adverse impacts, during and after mining, on the environment, health and socio-economics of people in mining districts; and
- to ensure long-term sustainable livelihoods for the affected people in mining areas.
Leave a Reply