7.5 million tonnes of iron ore approved for fresh extraction

Panaji: Mining activities in the state are set to get momentum in the next mining session, which will commence after the monsoon, as the Goa state pollution control board (GSPCB) has granted consent to operate to nine companies to export 7.5 million tonnes per annum.The state could only export 20 million tonnes per annum from freshly extracted iron ore. Director of mines and geology Narayan Gad said that the total extraction for 2025-2026 was over 4 million tonnes and over 2 million tonnes was sold. Gad said that mining activities will commence in Sept.While state govt auctioned 20 mineral blocks in the state, only nine mineral blocks have got consent to operate.Public hearings are yet to be conducted for some mineral blocks, and for others, while the public hearings have been conducted, they will get the consent to operate once the environmental clearances are obtained, said a senior official.The directorate of mines and geology (DMG) has set a time frame for the fifth mineral block auction. DMG will identify the mineral blocks by the end of Oct and conduct the auction by March 2027.The DMG also decided to start identification of new mineral blocks by June, and the blocks would be identified by the end of September.Gad said that assistance would be sought from the geological survey of India in the preparation of geological reports. Gad said that auctions are proposed to be conducted through the MSTC e-auction portal.“The proposed timelines are tentative in nature and are subject to change,” he said.State govt has conducted four auctions of 16 mineral blocks and nine blocks have started operations.State govt has decided to develop a mechanism to allocate maximum production limits for the auctioned mineral blocks as the Supreme Court set a limit of 20 million tonnes for export from the state.