New Delhi: The central government has come up with a big plan to auction off the mines. About 160 mines are targeted to be auctioned in the next two years. Negotiations are underway with various state governments to successfully auction these mines. Special plans are being made for each state. Detailed discussions are underway with the states. The mines to be auctioned over the next two years include 56 limestone, 55 iron ore, 31 bauxite and one gold mine. The Ministry of Mines is also pushing for the activation of more than 150 inactive mines near state-owned enterprises. It is learned that the Ministry of Mines has sought legal advice from the Policy Commission to amend sections 10A (2B) and (c) of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act. According to the two sections, pre-auction permission was granted to obtain preliminary environmental and forest permits. However, no Sunset Closet has been set for when the pre-auction mining will begin. Recently, the central government successfully auctioned off 17 coal mines. Many private companies and two central state-owned enterprises participated in the process. There was intense competition between the companies for mining. For the first time, the mine was auctioned off on the basis of revenue sharing. Institutions that have agreed to share more revenue with the government are considered the highest bidder. The Radhikapur East and Radhikapur West coal mines in Odisha have been auctioned off this time.
