Union Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy said he would take up Goa’s mining and dump clearance hurdles with the Central Govt including the Union Environment Ministry and examine legal amendments and reforms, including those concerning leases in ecologically sensitive areas. Speaking at a press briefing with CM Pramod Sawant, Reddy said discussions would be held in the coming days with Goa officials participating. He assured full cooperation from the Mines Ministry to address the state’s concerns. Reddy urged Goa to increase its mining ceiling and praised its digital mining systems, which the Centre wants to extend to other states. The Minister was speaking after a meeting with mining leaseholders and industry associations. Reddy is in Goa for the fourth Conference of Mining Ministers. Sawant said only six of 17 auctioned mineral blocks were operational, with environmental and forest clearances holding up others. Eleven leases have been identified for further exploration. Twenty dumps containing 40 million tonnes have been auctioned and another eight containing 100 million tonnes allocated, though clearance hurdles remain. Sawant sought reforms to remove dumps from land where forest growth had occurred, saying the land would subsequently be returned to the Forest Department. He said the dumps could sustain mining for 15–20 years. He also sought Central intervention concerning 153 leases in ecologically sensitive areas without disturbing the environment.
