Karnataka said that bypassing the state government, where the mining project is located, will become an unhealthy precedent and sought immediate cancellation of the approval for the mining project in Bellary. The latest move by the BJP-led Karnataka government has put the 335 hectares iron-ore mining project in the Bellary district under a scanner.
"There is a ban imposed on forest mining leases by the government in Bellary district. The Ramgad Minerals case cannot be treated on a different footing," said the Karnataka government in its letter to the environment ministry.
Earlier this week, the Orissa government filed a case in the Supreme Court challenging the environment ministry's decision to stop bauxite mining on the Niyamgiri Hills in Kalahandi. The environment ministry has found itself at crossroads after allowing companies to go for mining projects in forest areas. Read the full report here.
Source: ET Bureau, Economic Times, New Delhi.
