More results...

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
post
Filter by Categories
Featured Article
Health
Meghalaya
National
North East
Top Stories

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Sept 25: Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma today inaugurated the workshop on “Enhancing Mineral Exploration through NMET” organized by the Directorate of Mineral Resources, Government of Meghalaya, Shillong, which was held at the State Convention Centre.

Delivering the inaugural address, Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma, said that the workshop is being organized with the objective of contributing towards the nation’s goal of making India Viksit Bharat.

He also said that with the progress of technology in contemporary times mineral exploration has become more accurate, easy and scientific. “Technology partners like NESAC have played a very important role not only in mining activities but also in other sectors like water resources and forest resources mapping,” he said.

He also said that while minerals are being explored and mined for overall development of the state and the country there is also a need to ensure to minimize the impact on ecology and the environment and draw the line somewhere. “We as stakeholders cannot ignore these facts and are crucial to ensure sustainability and balance is maintained,” he stressed.

The Chief Minister also added that the land holding system of the state is very unique and embedded in culture and tradition. “These aspects are also something which we do not wish to ignore, and it is also important to respect these cultures, traditions and the people and work with them together to build up the right consensus and atmosphere ensuring everybody is on board,” he stated.

Concluding his speech, the Chief Minister said that transition of mining from the traditional method of mining that the miners of the state had been engaged in for centuries to scientific mining has to be justified.

“The ban on the non-scientific method of mining has a huge economic impact on families that depend on mining and on the economy of the state therefore the transition has to be just for all where the transition takes place within a given timeframe,” he added.

The Chief Minister also released the State Geological and Mineral Map of Meghalaya on a 1:1 million scale and also launched the Meghalaya Minerals Database during the occasion.

The one-day workshop was held to accelerate the exploration activity in the state. Through this workshop all stakeholders, including the exploration activity to enhance mineral production in the state.

At present the Directorate of Mineral Resources and the Geological Survey of India are the only two government organizations engaged in geological investigations and exploration of minerals in the state and there has been less participation from the private agencies in mineral exploration works. Most explorations are done through surface exploration processes i.e, by mapping, sampling etc and there are a few areas where the exploration process has been done through drilling.

The workshop is a strategic initiative to boost the state’s mining sector by bringing together key stakeholders facilitating the submission of high-quality exploration proposals, fostering innovation and addressing the challenges in the exploration process. The workshop is also aimed at encouraging private sector participation in the field of mining exploration.

Various presentations by NESAC, NMET, Ministry of Coal, GSI, Law Department, SEAC, CMPDI and MECL were made during the technical sessions.

Notable among the attendees were Asit Saha, Director General, GSI, Geetika Sharma, Deputy Secretary & HoD, NMET, Commissioner & Secretary, Mining & Geology, Meghalaya and Director of Mineral Resources, Meghalaya, R P Marak.

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Sept 22: At present, there are 32 applicants who have submitted their application as per the SOP issued by the Government on March 5, 2021, for the grant of a prospecting license for coal.

Out of these 17 applicants have received approval from the Central government and they are now in the exploration stage for generating a Geological Report before obtaining mining leases, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said in his reply to a starred question tabled in the Assembly on Friday.

Further, 4 out of the 17 approved applicants, after they have submitted their Geological Report, have received prior approval of the Central government for a mining lease in the State and the presentation of the Mining plan is completed and approval of the mining plans is awaited, he said while informing that 15 applicants are yet to obtain prior approval of the Central government for prospecting license.

Staff Reporter

Shillong, Sept 12: The State government has taken up with the Centre for reducing a hundred hectares of land as a minimum requirement for granting prospecting licenses and mining leases in the state.

This was after different miner organizations demanded an immediate review of the standard operating procedures (SOPs) for granting prospecting licenses and mining leases for coal mining in the state.

“Based on the different miner organizations appealing that it should be reduced, we have taken up the matter with the Government of India. The process is already on but we have not reached a conclusion yet but it is going on in the right direction,” Sangma told reporters.

He said when the State was fighting in the Supreme Court against the NGT ban on coal mining a discussion also took place with the Government of India (GOI).

“While these negotiations were going on, the area issue came up and the GOI was very particular that the number (100 hectares) should not go down and so we felt that in the larger interest of at least setting the ball rolling and starting the whole thing of mining happening, let us not stick too much to this 100 hectares issue as of now, let it start and once things start then in the next stage we can come and discuss for the reduction of the area because GOI was not at that point of time comfortable at reducing it. (We say) Okay fine but let us at least start with 100 hectares and then later on if necessary, we will try to work to reduce it,” Sangma said adding that in the interest of ensuring that mining started in the state, the government went ahead with the proposal.

Stating that Meghalaya’s case was very unique, Sangma said the State was having so much difficulty in reaching to a conclusion because of the unique land holding system.

“In other areas, the government owns the land, the government owns the mines and then leases it out to a private party but here the private party owns the land and now the government is acting as an agency to lease it out again to another individual to then mine it. So the government now has to change the rules based on Meghalaya’s land-holding system out here and that is where the complication came up. However, now we are in a stage where we have overcome that and that’s what has taken a lot of time but as I said all the hard work put in has given us positive results and I hope even this 100 hectares will be resolved,” he added.

Further, the chief minister informed that the mining plan for starting scientific mining are in the final stage of getting the approval of the Centre.

“I am happy that it has worked and we are now at the final stage of getting the mining plan approved and the mining will start,” he said.

He said the mining plans of four agencies which have already received the NOC concerned from the Centre government are being approved.

“So we expect the mining plan to get a final clearance. I can’t remember the name of the agency whether it is IBM or CMPDI – but one of the technical agencies after ensuring that their lease and all those aspects have already been clear, the final stage of that plan which was to submitted by them is being vetted as we speak and I expect in a matter of weeks or a month or so that we will actually see things happening in the ground,” the CM added.

Meghalaya Times

Hopkinson Road Ashiana ‘E’ Azam Block 3,
Lower, Lachumiere, Shillong,
Meghalaya 793001
linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram