Meeting on mine auctioning on July 28

Bhubaneswar: In a bid to finalise the process in which the mineral reserves of the State will be auctioned as per the amended Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2015, the State government will convene a meeting on July 28.

The chief secretary and the members of the High-Level Committee constituted for auctioning of mines will participate in the meeting. Based on the recommendations made during the meeting, the State government will finalise the process of auctioning the mines.

A gazette notification regarding the meeting has been made by the government. According to the notification, the government has formed a high-level committee headed by the development commissioner. The committee comprises seven members including the Industries and Mines secretaries.

According to sources, the first meeting of the committee will focus on examining the auction process, differential global positioning system (DGPS) survey and preparation of tender document. The panel will finalise its recommendations on the reservations for the public sector undertakings (PSUs).

Moreover, the committee will devise recommendations on granting of mining licences. It will also emphasise on the aspects which should be given due importance during mine auction and conservation, added the sources.

Notably, in the first phase, 16 mines in Keonjhar, Sundargarh and Malkangiri districts have been identified by the committee for discussion which includes nine iron ore, five manganese and two limestone mines, the sources said.