Report on illegal mining to be tabled in Goa assembly in October

PANAJI: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) constituted by the Goa Legislative Assembly, would table its detailed report on the illegal mining scam in the state, during the two-day assembly session starting from October 5.

Headed by the Leader of Opposition Manohar Parrikar, the PAC has prepared a detailed report on the illegal mining scam in Goa, which is likely to indict several government officers and politicos in power.

Refusing to disclose the details of the report, Parrikar said the report would become a public document, once it is tabled in the House.

"I will be tabling it in the assembly," he said. Assembly session will be held on October 5 and 7, as October 6 is a holiday.

PAC had issued notices to around 64, out of the 90 mining sites for various kinds of violation related to mining.

Parrikar said that around 20 companies have replied to the notices, while other companies are still in the process of doing so.

The illegal mining activities, exposed in the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) report, were allegedly carried out at the cost of forest cover in state's iron-ore rich rural belt.

According to sources, Goa exported around 54 million metric tones of iron ore last financial year, which is the highest in its history.

PAC probed various kinds of violation like illegal extraction of ore, extraction of ore beyond the permissible limits, evasion of royalty and others.

As per the rough estimates, the illegal mining scam in the state is pegged at Rs 1,200 crore.