Bhubaneswar: The Amendment to the Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation Act (MMDR Act), 1957 has boosted the mining revenue in Odisha.
The MMDR Act was amended through MMDR Amendment Act, 2015 with effect from 12 January 2015. In order to maintain sustainable production of minerals in the country considering the fact that a large number of mining leases were expiring in March, 2020 under Section 8A(6) of the MMDR Act, the Central Government amended the MMDR Act through the Minerals Laws (Amendment) Act, 2020 with effect from10 January 2020.
The reforms included seamless transfer of valid clearances to the new lessee selected through auction for a period of two years and allowing State Governments to take advance action for auction of mineral blocks even before the expiry of lease period to sustain the mineral production in the country.
These reforms have helped the Odisha Government and other mineral bearing States to increase its mining revenue during last seven years.
The mining revenue of Odisha has increased 10 times in 5 years from Rs 4,900 crore in 2016-17 to over Rs 50,000 crore in 2021-22.
Till October end this year, mining revenue collection has witnessed a growth of 7.04 per cent till October end of the current financial year 2023-24 in comparison to the collection of last fiscal year.
According to State’s fiscal report upto October of the financial year 2023-24, the State has collected Rs 24,267.55 crore from non-ferrous mining and metallurgical industries during the current year in comparison to the collection of Rs 22,670.81 crore during the last year.
The mining revenue collection of all four major mineral States, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Karnataka has been increased from Rs 5606 crore in 2016-17 to Rs 61,156 in 2021-22.
However, the mining revenue collection in Odisha was down in the last financial year, which also reflected in down fall in the overall mineral revenue collection in the four states in total.
The State has collected Rs 37,642 crore mining revenue during 2022-23 and the total collection of four States also down to Rs 47,187 crore during the last year.
The figures show that Odisha is the major contributor in the overall mining revenue collection in the country.
Union Minister of Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi, in a written reply in Rajya Sabha recently said the auction of critical and strategic minerals brings several key benefits, including bolstering domestic production, reducing import dependency, promoting sustainable resource management, attracting investments in the mining sector and the development of key industries crucial for India’s industrial and technological advancement.
This is a step towards creating a reliable supply chain of these minerals and a step towards making an ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’ and contributing towards increased economic growth, he had stated.
The Central Government has launched the first tranche of e-auction of 20 mineral blocks of critical and strategic minerals on 29.11.2023 which include blocks of Lithium, Rare Earth Elements, Platinum Group of Minerals, Nickel, Potash etc. The auction of these blocks aims to expedite the General Exploration (G2 level), achieve the operationalization of mines and create a steady supply of these minerals, thus reducing our reliance on imports and ensuring a more secure and resilient supply chain.
