core sector communique

Targets Fixed under National Mineral Policy

The targets fixed under National Mineral Policy for the year 2010-11 and 2011-12, inter-alia, include drafting of legislation in terms of policy directions in National Mineral Policy, 2008, implementing policies for zero-waste mining, preparing policy on Value Addition, taking policy measures to prevent and stop illegal mining, creating and operationalising educational and training facilities and Human Resources development in the mining sector, creation of mechanism for coordination between Ministry of Earth Science, Geological Survey of India and Indian Bureau of Mines for sea-bed exploration and mining, preparing policy paper on resources extraction consumption and exports of major mineral dynamic conservation strategies, endowing policy on acquisition of raw material assets abroad, and taking policy measures for incentivization of Venture Capital/investments for exploration and mining.

Accordingly, the Government has taken various initiatives, which include preparation of a draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Bill, 2011, for introduction in the Parliament, commencement of strengthening of Geological Survey of India (GSI) in terms of the recommendations of High Powered Committee and imitating a similar exercise for restructuring the Indian Bureau of Mines, requesting State Governments to develop action plans for strengthening the State Directorate of Mining and Geology, commencing a project on setting up a Mining Tenement System for the country, finalizing a Sustainable Development Framework for the Indian mining sector (comprising of principles, reporting initiatives and good practice guidelines), expediting the task of seabed mapping in India’s exclusive economic zone in offshore areas by procurement a new deep sea research vessel, revamping Central Geological Programming Board in the Geological Survey of India to ensure that projects and programmes are prioritized in line with the national policy goals, ensuring data filing requirements on all concession holders are strictly complied with, revising threshold values for 12 minerals, including iron ore, chromite and manganese, directing all the State Governments to impose a special condition under Rule 27(3) of the Mineral Concession Rules in all the mining leases to ensure that the entire lease area is properly prospected in a timely manner, providing reports, maps, etc. (non-restricted, non-sponsored) free of cost through Geological Survey of India portal, creating a Geophysical Data Repository under a separate project in Geological Survey of India, setting up a Coordination-cum-Empowered Committee in the Ministry of Mines, implementing amendment of Rule 45 of the Mineral Conservation and Development Rules, 1988, which makes it mandatory for all miners, exporters, traders, stockists and end-users to register with the IBM and report on all transactions of minerals to the IBM and the State Government, constituting an Inter-Ministerial Committee for studying the various models of venture capital/investment for exploration and mining in the country, commencing National Geo-morphological mapping and Hyper-spectral mapping programme with the assistance of National Remote Sensing Corporation in the Geological Survey of India, man power requirements in mining sector identified through a Confederation of Indian Industry Skill Mapping Study, and finalizing a strategy paper for the Ministry of Mines titled “unlocking the potential of the Indian Mineral sector”

This information was given by the Minister of State for Mines (Independent Charge) Shri Dinsha Patel in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.