Citation Act No 10 of 2015 Date passed 3 March 2015 Date passed 20 March 2015 | Enacted by Lok Sabha Enacted by Rajya Sabha Date assented to 26 March 2015 | |
 | ||
The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2015 is a legislation in India. It amended the Mines and Minerals (Regulation and Development) Act, 1957 and replaced the ordinance promulgated in January 2015. The bill seeks to bring transparency to the allocation of mining licence process by auctions.
Contents
The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 was promulgated on 12 January 2015. The bill seeking to replace it was passed in the Lok Sabha on 3 March 2015 and in the Rajya Sabha on 20 March 2015.
Background
In November 2014, the draft of the bill was released for public comments. On 12 January 2015, Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 was approved by the President of India. It was the 7th ordinance by the National Democratic Alliance government since it took power in May 2014. The bill to replace the ordinance was introduced in the Parliament on 23 February 2015.
On 16 May 2014, Supreme Court of India cancelled licences of 26 mines in Odisha state. These mines were being operating even though the state had not given them renewal leases. The state was given 6 months to resolve the issues. During this period, Odisha renewed 8 leases. On 6 January 2015, the Government of Odisha had decided to auction its remaining non-coal mining leases awaiting renewal. The state was granted 2 more months on 23 February to decide. However, introduction of the bill delayed Odisha's plans of auction.
Summary
The bill seeks to introduce a system of auctions to allocate mining licenses. A fixed percentage to the revenue of a mine will be allocated to development of the area around it, to be called a District Mineral Foundation. The state government will set the rates and it will be in addition to the royalty. A National Mineral Exploration Trust will be set up to explore and promote non-coal minerals. It will have a starting fund of ₹500 crore and will be funded by a 2% levy from mining license holders.
The licences will have a validity of 50 years, compared to the previous 30 years. There will be no renewal of licences, only re-auction. The bill contains a new license for prospecting-cum-mining, replacing a two-stage process. The mining and prospecting-cum-mining licences may be transferred to another party by notifying the state government. The state government may charge a fees for such transfers. Notified minerals like iron ore, limestone, manganese, and bauxite, will not require a prospecting licence. The mining licence will be autioned. For non-notified minerals, a prospecting-cum-mining licence will be required.
The bill will make illegal mining, trespassing and violation of norms, cognisable offences punishable by 2 years imprisonment and/or fine. The state government will be allowed to set up special courts for such trials.
Criticism
In January 2015, after the ordinance was signed, a mining industry lobby group Society of Geo-scientists and Allied Technologists (SGAT) said that the prospecting-cum-mining was useless as no one would apply for such a licence unless they had found a proven reserve by prospecting first.
In March 2015, during the session in which the bill was tabled, the central government did accept the changes proposed some opposition members, some of whom staged a walk-out. Biju Janata Dal (BJD) political party of Odisha said that the bill infringes on the rights of state governments. The view was supported by Indian National Congress and All India Trinamool Congress party. Kariya Munda of BJP said that provisions for the tribals displaced by mines should be made. Tathagata Satapathy of BJD also voiced similar concerns. The period of validity of licences was criticised as being too long at 50 years.