The Odisha Govt on Thursday moved to take possession and auction material that old lessees could not evacuate.
This includes iron ore at RP Sao, Kalinga Mining Corporation, Ghanshyam Misra and Serajuddin who along with KJS Ahluwalia had gone to court seeking more time to despatch previously mines ore from their mines.
As directed by the High Court the Principal Secretary Steel and Mines had heard them and despite disagreeing with the miners reasons for failing to despatch their stock in the 7 months given to them agree to give them another month. Provided the lessees give an undertaking they will not seek more time. None of them had.
KJS Ahluwalia, which operated the Nuagaon mine, has challenged this 5 May 2021 notice in the HC. Barring his case, which is subjudice, the Odisha government believes, all other lessees “have defaulted (to act as per the notice) and thus forfeited their right to removal material” lying undisposed in the lease now being mined by a new lessee.
In a letter addressed to the Director of Mines, the Additional Secretary asked him to immediately “initiate joint verification of the stocks and take over the same following the guidelines issues earlier.”
The stocks with these miners as on 31st Mar’20 totalled around 40 mnt and closing stock on 31st Oct’20 stood at around 17 mn t
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