• Government is coming up with many structural reforms in the mining sector to realise its true potential.

    • Major objectives are

        ◦ to increase participation of the private sector in mineral exploration.

        ◦ to redefine the norms of exploration for auction of mineral blocks to ensure a seamless transition from exploration to production.

        ◦ to redefine the standard of exploration required for auctioning of blocks for prospecting license-cum mining lease.

        ◦ to open acreage licensing policy for allocation of mining rights which will give a major boost to the production of minerals in the country.

    • The government also wants to introduce competition, transparency and private sector participation in the coal sector through:

        ◦ revenue sharing mechanism instead of regime of fixed Rupee/tonne;

        ◦ entry norms will be liberalized such that there will be no eligibility conditions except the requirement of upfront payment with a ceiling;

        ◦ partially explored coal blocks would also be offered through award of prospecting licence-cum-mining lease; and

        ◦ production earlier than scheduled will be incentivized through rebate in revenue share.

    • In March, 2020 when leases of large number of working mines expired and they had to be auctioned immediately, the Government took a proactive and biggest industry-friendly step of transferring all statutory clearances to the new lessees by promulgating an ordinance. This was a major step to ensure seamless production of raw materials.

    • As a result, Odisha has completed the successful auction of large number of iron ore mines.

    • Mining industry is a core to India’s growth ambition of USD 5 trillion. India is endowed with vast natural resources and the industry has contributed in many ways to the country’s economy like direct contribution to the GDP, indirect contribution through development of downstream industries and employment.

    • Apart from generating jobs, reducing dependence on fuel import and stimulating the economic growth, the opening of the coal sector to private players is also proposed which will garner hefty capital investment in the country over next 5-7 years. 

    • FDI caps in the mining and exploration of metal and non-metal ores have been increased to 100% under the automatic route. 

    • The Geological Survey of India has almost doubled its exploration activity by implementing about 400 mineral exploration projects on various mineral commodities. 

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants. The views expressed here are personal.)