The indication came even as environment minister Prakash Javadekar on Tuesday emphasized that states with higher forest cover should not be penalized and made a strong pitch for separate criteria for development and environment protection in Naxal-hit districts.
The fresh order on Goa, which is expected to be issued soon by the environment ministry, may allow the state government to phase out mining in the buffer zone in next 5-10 years instead of going ahead with the immediate outright ban.
The review will be a second relief to Goa miners. They had earlier got a major concession from the Supreme Court which had in April partially lifted the 18-month-old mining ban in the state and allowed 20 million tonnes of iron ore to be extracted annually.
The ban had been in force in the wake of the recommendations of the justice Shah Commission. The commission had pointed at rampant illegal mining, leading to its ban in 2012. The apex court had, however, partially lifted it and gave powers to the state government to regulate the activities of miners.
"The Centre's review will also pave the way for Goa to come out with a new mining policy, comprising certain dos and don'ts for miners, as per the direction of the apex court. Hopefully, the state government will come out with a new mining policy by month end", said an official.
He said the drafting of a new mining policy was mandatory to resume iron ore extraction and exports from Goa.
Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar got these assurances when he along with state officials met the environment minister Prakash Javadekar here and raised the issue during a detailed discussion over the contentious green matters.
Javadekar said, "He received innovative suggestions from Goa chief minister. We look forward to amicable solutions to the problems discussed by him".
He told the TOI that his ministry would take the decision in such a manner that it does not affect the conservation while carrying out developmental projects.
"Goa is a very small state. We will have to take a realistic decision as far as the one kilometer buffer zone around the wildlife sanctuaries is concerned. Our government is very positive about development and environmental protection," he said.
Besides, the ministry will also review the Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats which tends to convert 40% of Goa into eco-sensitive zone making it a 'no-go' area for many activities. This issue will, however, be first discussed with other stakeholders including the remaining five states - Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat - which fall under the Western Ghats.
The minister held similar meeting with Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh who among other issues discussed the possibility of extending the limit of diversion of forest area in naxal-affected districts from existing five hectares to 40 hectares and providing exemptions to many projects under the Forest Rights Act.
Javadekar in the meeting made a strong pitch for separate criteria for development and environment protection in naxal-hit districts.
"Assured all possible help and assistance for development and environment protection to the CM of Chhattisgarh," Javadekar said in the micro-blogging website Twitter, adding "The left wing extremism districts need to have separate criteria for development and environment protection".
In another tweet, he added "the states with higher forest cover should not be penalized; they should be benefitted for their environment protection efforts."
He also emphasized on developing a mechanism which will ensure that all the guidelines issued by the Centre for protecting the environment can be implemented properly. "We should evolve a mechanism to ensure that the Centre's guidelines for environment protection to be implemented properly", he tweeted.
Without going into the details, he said, "We look forward to similar meetings with other state governments to resolve issues of environment protection and development".
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/followceleb.cms?alias=Mining in Goa,Illegal mining,Goa mining,buffer zone
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