The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi on Monday alleged that the Odisha government is hand in glove with the mining mafia responsible for a scam to the tune of Rs 500 crore.
Sarangi alleged this at a press conference in Bhubaneswar. She said, “Before the auction, the low-grade manganese ore ranged from 4.86% to a maximum of 40%. However, this range has been raised to 98% and 96% in the last two years. However, this lowering of grade of ore has led to a huge loss to the state exchequer.”
“No standard operating procedure (SOP) has been developed to prevent the recurrence of such theft through downgrading the ore. Instead of initiating steps for cancellation of the lease, the state government has given a window of opportunity to the mine owners by raising a demand and allowing them to get a stay order from the High Court or the Mines Tribunal,” Sarangi said.
“There is loss of thousands of crores to the State exchequer by deliberately downgrading the quality of ore being produced in many of the auctioned mines. This cannot happen without the connivance of the State Govt and its machinery,” she alleged.
She cited the Shah Commission report while cornering the Odisha government. She said, “Shah Commission had been set up by the Central Government to enquire into the illegal mining/the mining scam in Odisha. In November 2010, the Shah Commission gave a report regarding various irregularities including the Odisha govt turning a blind eye to illegal mining in various mines of Odisha. The report stated that the extent of irregularities in the mining sector in Odisha was to the tune of Rs 59,000- crore.”
“It was expected that after Shah Commission Report about illegal mining in Odisha, the state govt would make sincere attempts to check the irregularities. But the corruption and irregularities have found new ways under the BJD govt,” Sarangi said.
No comments have been received from the concerned authorities.