The Hindu : Uncertainty over KIOCL lease

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Oct 23, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Karnataka

Uncertainty over KIOCL lease

By Our Staff Correspondent

HASSAN OCT. 22. The Sword of Damocles is hanging over the public sector Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd. (KIOCL) as the 30-year mining lease, which the KIOCL clinched in 1969, expires (with additional renewal of a three-year lease) on Thursday.

The KIOCL, which has sought fresh lease, is at the crossroads, with environmental groups opposing the extension of lease as it is perceived to be harmful to Western Ghats.

The President of the Tunga-Bhadra Ulisi Horata Okkuta, Kalkuli Vittal Hegde, told The Hindu that contradictory statements by the Union and State governments on the issue had created confusion. When a case challenging the mining operation was in the Supreme Court, the Union Government hinted at extension of mining license by 20 years while the State Government favoured restricting the lease to five years.

He said the Okkuta had organised a meeting of writers, artists, intellectuals, and other citizens in Mythic Society, Bangalore, on Wednesday to seek their opinion and support to the agitation against mining operation.

Mr. Hegde said that Nippon Company of Japan was ready to buy 76 per cent stake in the KIOCL and the environmental groups had written to the Prime Minister of Japan and Chairman of Nippon Company to shelve the idea as it might go against the environment concerns expressed by the Japan Government over the years.

Various environmental groups were trying to stall the proposed renewal of mining licence.

They were even ready to approach the court, if the Government did not heed their pleas. Their demands included creating an alternative source of livelihood for 2,400 employees, removing silt in Lakya Dam, which is considered as an "eco time bomb", and an end to mining.

The renewal of KIOCL's mining licence, if at all, would raise questions on the survival of "National Park" in the forests of Western Ghats.

According to official sources, for the Kudrmukh National Park project, 61,000 hectares of land stretching over Sringeri, Koppa, Mudigere, Karkala and Belthangadi was planned to be transferred from Revenue Department to Forest Department. This would have resulted in eviction of 3,200 families living in the area.

Trouble started over the issue in 1987, when the State Government decided to declare the area where the KIOCL had its mining lease as a National Park.

According to sources, the final declaration of National Park might become invalid as the orders for settling the claims of the people as per the Wildlife Act have not been passed.

Because of this, the exclusion of 3,703 hectares of forestland from the National Park limits and extension of mining lease will become illegal.

The final notification was issued last year when the anti-mining agitation was led by the winner of the Jnan Pith Award, U.R. Ananth Murthy.

With the environmentalists taking up cudgels against the extension of mining lease to KIOCL, the battle lines are drawn between lobbies that support "development" and "environment protection".

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