Bhubaneswar, July 23: Union mines secretary Balvinder Kumar today said that the Odisha government would start auctioning its mineral blocks by the end of October.
After reviewing the mining activities in the state at the secretariat here, he said: "The Mines and Minerals Development Regulations Act (MMDR Act) has been amended. Now, we are requesting all states to go for auction of blocks following the amended law. We are very happy that the Odisha government has taken pro-active steps in this regard. They have identified 16 blocks and Odisha government is hopeful that by end of October, they will start auctioning the blocks."
The mines secretary said: "We have requested the state government to constitute the District Mineral Foundation Fund (DMFF) at the earliest. This fund will be operational from January 2016. Some of the districts will be getting funds in the range of Rs 200 crore to Rs 400 crore."
Once the funds are formed, the money can be transferred immediately. "The Centre will shortly indicate the percentage of royalty that will be put in these funds," Kumar said.
The Centre has also requested the state government to build capacity of these districts to properly utilise the huge funds that will be flowing in for socio-economic development and welfare of the people engaged in mining activities.
"The Centre will extend all possible help on the constitution of the District Mineral Foundation or for auctioning of these blocks. We will be very happy to extend that help," said Kumar.
After the meeting, chief secretary Gokul Chandra Pati said: "Though we have not a fixed a date for government notification in this regard, it will be done shortly."
The auction of the mines will be done following the recommendation of a committee headed by the development commissioner. The members of the committee are secretaries of steel and mines and industries departments, director of mines, managing director of Odisha Mining Corporation and the chief executive officer of Orissa Space Applications Centre. The first meeting of the committee is scheduled to take place on July 28.
