Damodar Rout

Bhubaneswar, July 30: Former minister and senior BJD leader Damodar Rout today gave the multi-crore mining scam an interesting political spin saying the controversy had cast a shadow on the state’s future, but he was under pressure to keep his mouth shut over the issue.

“If I open my mouth, there is a threat of punishment. I am in the ruling party,” said Rout while addressing a seminar on the future of minerals organised by Orissa Jana Samilani, a non-political organisation, here.

Rout, who has recently been dropped from the Naveen Patnaik ministry, is in news for his statements targeting BJD second-in-command, Pyari Mohan Mohapatra.

Rout said if there was no equilibrium in the development of agriculture and industry sectors, an awkward social situation was likely to develop, which was not good for the society in general. “We all know what is going on in the state,” he said, inviting his audience to read between the lines.

Making a sarcastic reference to the ministers, who had held the reins of industries and steel and mines department since the BJD government came to power, Rout said while he was not opposed to industrialisation, he wanted the state’s natural resources and elephant corridors also to be preserved. These departments have been held by Padmanabha Behera, Pradeep Amat and, at present, by Raghunath Mohanty.

Union minister of state for chemicals and fertilisers Srikant Jena advocated the state’s control over minerals. “The Orissa Mining Corporation should be accorded responsibility to raise minerals. Separate corporations should come up to deal with chromite, iron and bauxite,” he said.

Jena said the minerals should be given to the industrial houses on market-linked prices. Stating that the mining scam should be handed over to the CBI for inquiry, Jena said: “The legal mine owners are indulging in illegal export of minerals.”

Former Union minister Braja Kishore Tripathy said a transparent mining policy should be adopted and emphasis given on value addition of minerals. “The National Mineral Development Corporation’s earlier proposal to invest as well as the Orissa Mining Corporation being given the sole responsibility to raise minerals should be revived,” he said.

Congress senior leader Narasingha Mishra said the state Congress had already passed a resolution that mining lease should be not given to any private individual or public-private company. “No private company should be given the captive mines. They should be given the mines only on some concession rates,” he said.

CPI(M) leader Janardan Pati and CPI leader Ramakrushna Panda argued for the state’s control over minerals.

President of Orissa Janna Sammilani Rabi Das said the convention had passed a resolution that no mining lease should be given to any individual or private company.

“The convention has also decided to draft an alternative policy to the Mining Act. The committee will organise four meetings at four different places in the state. Later, the proposal would be sent both to the state government and the Centre for consideration,” said Das.