1. Land given to ArcelorMittal belongs to tribals says an NGO
2. Natural resources to be exploited scientifically
3. Govt may levy 35 pc safeguard duty on aluminium products
4. JSW Steel set to pip Tata; become India's largest private sector steelmaker
5. Bangalore: High Court Orders Presentation of Illegal Mining Report
6. SAIL: Raw material reprieve
7. GSPC plans two 1,000 MW power projects
8. Floods in 3 Australia states hit mining, damage crops
9. Appeals Court Reverses Limits on Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining
10. More Chinese firms in the hunt for mines
11. Australia mulling uranium sales to India
12. Zimbabwe, India negotiate $60 mln mine mechanization deal
13. Forest fire engulfs 400 hectares in Amreli
14. People not reporting for work a cause of less NREGA employment
15. No cheer for India’s children in interim budget
Mining – India
Land given to ArcelorMittal belongs to tribals says an NGO
Ranchi, Feb 17: After the authorities identified 1,015 acre land in Gumla for ArcelorMittal's 12 mtpa project, an NGO on Tuesday sought to know how the land was distinguished in a district covered under the Chhotnagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act."The entire land selected by the steel company comes under the CNT Act which protects tribal land from purchase and sale," claimed Dayamani Barla, who is spearheading the Adivasi-Moolwasi Astitva Raksha Manch against land acquisition in Gumla and Khunti districts where the steel major had selected land for its multi-crore greenfield project.
"The land is used either for dwelling or for agriculture since 1932. We will continue to protest against acquisition of land and will move to court if needed," he said.
Gumla Deputy Commissioner Rahul Sharma, however, rubbished the claim and asserted that the land identified for the purpose belonged to the government.
"The 1,015 acre land identified recently to offer to the steel major at the cost of Rs 12.39 crore is government land," said Sharma, who was till recently the director of state industry department.
The administration was now optimistic that ArcelorMittal would deposit money with the district administration to acquire the land and start its project that reportedly requires nearly 11,000 acre.
Laxmi Niwas Mittal himself came to Ranchi to sign an MoU for the Rs 40,000 crore project on October 8, 2005 during the then Arjun Munda government when the economy was growing.
The manch, however, is protesting against any attempt to acquire land spread over in Kamdara (Gumla) and Torpa (Khunti). The identification of government land in Torpa was either in progress or would be taken up at the earliest.
"We are opposing the areas chosen by the company because they have such tribal landmarks as 'sarna sthal' (religious place), 'masna sthal' (cremation ground) and a river being used by the tribals and other dwellers," said Barla, who, as the convenor of the manch, had led two agitations and rejected offer for talks with the company.
"On one hand the government is allotting land to tribals and other dwellers under the latest Forest Rights Act and on the other hand the authorities want to displace those people who had been there (identified land in Gumla and Khunti) since 1932," said Barla.
Bureau Report
http://www.zeenews.com/states/2009-02-17/508350news.html
Natural resources to be exploited scientifically
Category » Bhopal Posted On Tuesday, February 17, 2009By Our Staff Reporter
The Minister of State for Mineral Resources and Forests Rajendra Shukla has said that mineral and natural resources would be exploited scientifically to the optimum for all round development of the state. Shukla said that special schemes would be implemented for removing environmental imbalance under the 100-day action plan of the department. He informed that a new mineral policy is on the anvil for this. He said that the staff would be strengthened to put a more effective check on illegal mining and transportation of minerals.
Shukla informed that proper survey of minerals like dolomite, limestone, coal, iron ore, bauxite would be conducted which would include penetration also. Besides, the departmental officers would make physical inspection of about 50 mines and after this their proper excavation would be ensured as per the scheme.
The Minister said that co-ordination will be established with the Indian Bureau of Mines to ensure removal of environmental imbalance. A meeting will also be held with MP Pollution Control Board to review the measures taken for environment protection.
Shukla informed that basic requirements would be provided at the mines of coal, slate, manganese etc. For this, meetings of important cement manufacturing companies would be convened.
The Minister informed that coal based and other minerals and methane gas deposits will be used for development of the state. Action would be taken after taking necessary measures for coal excavation from the applied captive coal to use it for energy sector.
The Minister further said that in allotment of small likes like sand priority will be given to people below poverty line and educated unemployed youths. He said that accreditation powers have been given to grant mining leases in Madhya Pradesh Minor Mineral Rules. It would be made compulsory to publish in daily newspapers the information of mining lease allotment.
http://www.centralchronicle.com/viewnews.asp?articleID=539
Govt may levy 35 pc safeguard duty on aluminium products
17 Feb 2009, 1425 hrs IST, PTI
dominated by players like Hindalco, Nalco and Vedanta, against cheap imports from
Safeguard duty is a temporary protectionist measure, which is brought in for a certain timeframe to avert any damage to the domestic industry from cheap imports.
The Directorate General of Safeguards, Customs and Central Excise, which had last month initiated a probe into cheap arrival of aluminium products in India, has recommended to the Committee of Secretaries (CoS) for imposing ad-valorem provisional safeguard duty for 200 days.
"There exist critical circumstances, where any delay in application of specific safeguard measures would cause damage (to industry), which would be difficult to repair," the Directorate General of Safeguards (DGS) said in its proposal.
The items on which the DGS has proposed imposing the duty are flat-rolled aluminium products, used by sectors like auto and construction, and aluminium foil, widely consumed by the packaging industry, while on flat-rolled items the proposed safeguard duty is 21 per cent, that on foil is 35 per cent.
The aluminium producers led by Hindalco had last month filed a petition with the DGS for imposing safeguard duty against
JSW Steel set to pip Tata; become India
17 Feb 2009, 1727 hrs IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Steel is set to pip Tata Steel and become the country's largest private sector steel producer with the
commissioning of a 3 MTPA extended production line at its Vijaynagar facility tomorrow.
"We are commissioning the three million tonnes per annum additional production line at Vijaynagar plant on February 18, taking its total capacity to 6.8 MTPA," JSW Steel Vice- Chairman and Managing Director Sajjan Jindal told reporters.
With the start of commercial production from the expanded facility, JSW Steel's overall production capacity would reach 7.8 million tonnes from the present 4.8 million tonnes (including 1-MTPA from
As of now, SAIL is India's largest public sector steel maker with annual production close to 15 million tonnes, while Tata Steel tops the list among private players with installed production capacity of 6.8 million tonnes at
Hit by the global economic crisis, JSW Steel had put on hold the commissioning of the new blast furnace, which is claimed to the country's largest furnace, for six months.
However, marching ahead with its expansion plans, JSW Steel said it has achieved financial closure to further augment the capacity of the Vijanagar unit to 10-MTPA.
"We have tied-up the finances to further increase the capacity of our Vijaynagar plant to 10-MTPA," Jindal said.
Bangalore
Daijiworld Media Network -
"The Lokayukta does not have power to implement the said report. Therefore, this report should be presented in the court. We will take this report as the basis to dispose of mining dispute cases," the court said.
The bench took umbrage to the government's action in permitting unregulated export of ore and passed oral instructions to the government, asking it to ensure that the ore export is stopped forthwith. The judges observed that factories in the state in the public sector are facing closure because of the dearth of ore, whereas private firms and individuals involved with iron ore export are given a free hand. The bench pointed out that Vishweshwaraiah Iron and Steel Ltd factory in Bhadravati has stopped functioning because of lack of raw materials, making thousands of workers to lose their jobs. At the same time, the state is exporting ore. This is ironical, it observed.
During the hearing of a petition moved by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee member Shankar Munavalli, seeking directive from the High Court to hand over the Rs 150 crore mining scam that occurred during the regime of the coalition government in the state, advocate general Uday Holla drew the attention of the bench to the fact that a report on illegal mining had been presented by the Lokayukta in this respect, to the government on December 18. Accordingly, the judges passed the above order.
The High Court said that it can not close its eyes to the developments that can have serious repercussions. It has asked the government to furnish full particulars of procedures followed while allotting ore mines on lease, prices of iron ore, list of mining lease holders and other details to enable to pass an order.
The judges commented, that it would be beneficial for both the government and the people to export finished goods rather than the raw materials, by framing proper policies for the same, as it will have several advantages including mitigating unemployment problem.
SAIL: Raw material reprieve |
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| Shobhana Subramanian & Varun Sharma / Mumbai February 18, 2009, 0:58 IST |
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There’s news that SAIL may be able to buy coking coal from BHP Billiton at $150 per tonne. Should these reports turn out to be correct, it would mean a big saving for the steel maker because the price is around 50 per cent lower than what the company has been paying.
SAIL has access to captive reserves of iron ore but imports coking coal; high prices of this key input have pushed up the company’s raw material bill over the last couple of years. New contracts being negotiated at lower prices are welcome at a time when weaker demand for steel from key user sectors has resulted in the government-owned firm’s volumes falling by about 20 per cent in the December 2008 quarter. Its competitors didn’t see as sharp a drop though — volumes came off by 13 and 14 per cent for JSW and Tata Steel respectively.
However, things could look up for SAIL with Indian Railways upping its target for acquiring wagons to nearly 15,000 from current levels of 6,600. While that should go a long way in boosting demand for steel, the catch is that it could take a while before orders are placed. Prices of steel in the home market have fallen substantially — SAIL took a cut of around Rs 6,000 in the December 2008 quarter. As a result, realisations per tonne which were around Rs 46,000 in the September quarter fell sharply to around Rs 37,000, a fall of about 19 per cent. Together with lower volumes, it resulted in a fall in net sales of around fell 6 per cent to Rs 8,921 crore.
Even after trimming production, the company’s inventories haven’t been getting cleared fast enough. With demand from sectors such as infrastructure expected to pick up after the elections, the second half of 2009-10 might see volumes improve. By then, the company will also gain from lower coking coal prices and that should help improve operating margins which fell 1860 basis points y-o-y to 12.7 per cent in the December quarter. SAIL’s investment of Rs 4,000 crore for mining projects in Orissa is on track — the firm plans to turn out 26 million tonnes of steel per annum by 2010-11.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/sail-raw-material-reprieve/22/00/349340/
GSPC plans two 1,000 MW power projects |
| BS Reporter / Mumbai/ Ahmedabad February 18, 2009, 0:58 IST |
| |
To infuse Rs 7k crore for two projects.
State owned Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) has firmed up its plans to set up two
“Two sites have been identified one at Banaskantha and other at Vadnagar for setting up gas based power projects. The huge amount of gas that will flow from the KG Basin will be used to fire the 2,000 MW power projects,” said D J Pandian, MD of GSPC.
He however maintained that it was yet to be decided whether GSPC would independently execute the project or rope in some equity partner. “We might hand over the entire project to some other state owned PSU and remain a long term fuel supplier,” he added.
The
GSPC is already in the process of setting up a 700 MW gas/LNG based power plant at Pipavav. The entire project to be completed in two phases is likely to be commissioned by December 2010.
GSPC has also signed MoU for expansion of its gas grid which includes Mundra-Palanpur pipeline. The gas grid expansion project will require investment of Rs 3,000 crore. The company has also decided to foray into wind energy as it has chalked out massive plans of setting up 200 MW of wind energy generation for an investment of Rs 1200 crore. Besides, GSPC through its subsidiary company GSPC Gas has signed MoU of Rs 8,000 crore for city gas distribution in
http://business-standard.com/india/news/gspc-plans-two-1000-mw-power-projects/10/00/349307/
Mining – International
Floods in 3 Australia
Tue Feb 17, 2009 3:03am EST
By Michael Perry
SYDNEY, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Flooding rivers and heavy rains cut off towns, stopped mining operations and damaged crops in three Australian states on Tuesday -- one week after devastating bushfires swept the country's southeast killing 200 people.
The tropical state of
The damage bill in
Scientists say climate change will bring not only warmer temperatures to
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is expected to come under pressure to introduce a tougher climate policy later this year as a result of the nation's deadliest bushfires last Saturday and the subsequent flooding.
Thousands of cattle are estimated to have perished during the
"There have been losses (of livestock) and they are potentially in the thousands, but until people can get around nobody is putting a figure on it," AgForce chief executive Andrew Freeman told local media.
People in
A five-year-old boy was taken by a crocodile earlier this month after he followed his dog into floodwaters at
He disappeared in the water and his brother saw a large crocodile near where he was last seen, a police statement said.
DAMAGE
Heavy rain and flooding forced mining giant Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc (RIO.L) (RIO.AX) to suspend iron ore mining and rail haulage on Tuesday over a large part of the Pilbara region in
All operations at the company's Pannawonica, Brockman and Nammuldi mines have been halted, and pit mining at Tom Price and Paraburdoo have also been brought to a standstill, it said.
Flooding along the 80 km (50 mile) road separating Rio's two main ports at Dampier and Cape Lambert made it difficult to fully assess the impact the bad weather was having on operations that unload up to a half-million tonnes of ore daily.
A low depression storm off the east coast caused heavy rains on Tuesday in
The outback town of Bourke, in drought last week, has recorded 232 mm of rain in recent days, more than two-thirds of its annual rain. While the coastal town of
"Both sides of the town are flooded," said the manager of the Diggers Tavern in Bellingen. ($1 = A$1.55) (Additional reporting by James Regan; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
http://www.reuters.com/article/featuredCrisis/idUSSYD425204
Appeals Court Reverses Limits on Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining
In mountaintop removal coal operations, the peaks of mountains are blasted away with explosives to expose coal seams and the waste materials are dumped into streams, causing what the plaintiff environmental groups claim is irreversible ecological damage.
In a victory for the coal industry, a panel of the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that U.S. District Judge Robert Chambers erred in his March 2007 decision that required full consideration of the environmental effects of mountaintop removal and slowed the issuing of new permits.
Judge Chambers had ruled that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated the Clean Water Act in issuing permits for four mountaintop removal coal operations.
The appeals court concluded that Judge Chambers did not properly defer to the Corps' interpretation of its own rules when granting Clean Water Act, CWA, permits for the coal mines.
"In matters involving complex predictions based on special expertise, a reviewing court must generally be at its most deferential," wrote Judge Roget Gregory on behalf of himself and Judge Dennis Shedd.
Judge M. Blane Michael dissented from parts of the decision that found the Corps had rightly concluded the mining operations in question would cause no significant environmental degradation.
"Rather than basing its decision on the (binding) language of the regulations," Judge Michael wrote, "the majority focuses instead on the Corps' compliance with an internal guidance document that is at odds with the regulations' clear requirements. The effect is to completely undermine the goal of mitigation: replacement of what is being lost."
"Because the Corps has offered no basis on which to conclude that the environmental impacts of the valley fill projects as mitigated will be insignificant," Judge Michael wrote, "this court should reject the mitigation as inadequate under the CWA and NEPA [the National Environmental Policy Act]."
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Catenary Coal Company's mountaintop removal operation on |
The case was originally filed by Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, Coal River Mountain Watch and the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy against Aracoma Coal Company, a subsidiary of Massey Energy, and four others, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. A clutch of mining companies filed briefs in support of the defendants.
Environmental groups say the appeals court decision will allow up to 90 more mountain peaks to be removed by coal mining operations.
They argue that this form of mining poisons drinking water, lays waste to wildlife habitat, increases the risk of flooding and wipes out entire communities.
"Today the coal industry – aided by the Bush administration – is allowing our water to be poisoned," said Judy Bonds of Coal River Mountain Watch. "Tomorrow it will be the East Coast's water supply as the mining discharges will reach downstream water sources."
"Aside from the people, the mountains and streams of
"We believe the decision is wrong on the law and the science," said Steve Roady, Earthjustice attorney who represented the environmental groups. "This fight is not over until mountaintop removal mining is over. We will continue to litigate and in addition, the new administration must take immediate steps to curb the terrible practice of mountaintop removal mining and undo the mistakes of the past."
In December 2008 the Bush administration repealed a rule requiring buffer zones around streams where wastes from mountaintop removal could not be dumped.
With repeal of the rule, coal companies are now able to dump tons of mining waste into streams without violating the Clean Water Act.
"Either Congress or the Obama administration need to reinstate the Stream Buffer Zone rule and to pass the Clean Water Protection Act," said Tierra Curry, conservation biologist with the Center for Biological Diversity. "But better yet, mountaintop removal should be prohibited and the burning of coal immediately phased out to save the planet from dangerous climate change."
Since mountaintop removal coal mining began in 1970, an estimated 1.5 million acres of hardwood forest have been lost, over 470 mountaintops have been blasted, and 1,200 miles of Appalachian streams have been buried.
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2009/2009-02-17-092.asp
More Chinese firms in the hunt for mines
February 18, 2009 - 3:11PM
Wuhan Iron & Steel Group and Jiangsu Shagang Group, China's third- and fifth-largest steelmakers, are shopping for iron ore mining stakes in Australia and Brazil, executives said in interviews.
``We are evaluating and selecting'' candidates in Australia and Brazil, said Shen Wenrong, Jiangsu-based Shagang's chairman. ``Going overseas is the government policy, so I believe we will get financing from Chinese banks.'' Wuhan spokesman Bai Fang said his company is ``looking for opportunities'' amid lower acquisition costs for iron ore assets in Australia and ``won't rule out other countries.''
The world's top metal user, China already has acquired $US22 billion ($34 billion) worth of commodity assets this year after a 70% drop in metal and oil since July ended a six-year boom in raw materials. With US and Australian banks still hesitant to lend, Rio Tinto Group and OZ Minerals, laboring under combined debt of $US40 billion, agreed this month to sell stakes to Aluminum Corp. of China and China Minmetals, respectively.
``China has turned out to be the bank of last resort,'' said Glyn Lawcock, head of resources research at UBS AG in Sydney.
``China is a net importer of copper, bauxite, alumina, nickel, zircon, uranium. China is looking for ways to secure supply of these raw materials.''
Commodity acquisitions by China would put increasing amounts of the world's raw materials under control of their biggest consumer and may allow it to influence prices. The investment by Aluminum Corp. of China, or Chinalco as the state-owned entity is known, into Rio may bolster China's bargaining power to set iron ore prices, China Iron and Steel Association said.
Steel prices surge
China's plan to boost the economy with 4 trillion ($914 billion) yuan in spending on roads, bridges and other infrastructure has pushed up prices for steel and iron ore by as much as 37% and the cost of shipping commodities has more than doubled.
State-owned China National Petroleum Corp., the country's largest oil producer, also is looking overseas in search of oil fields. China this week agreed to provide $US25 billion of loans to Russia in return for oil supplies for the next 20 years.
Australia already has signaled concern that China is buying strategic assets on the cheap. Treasurer Wayne Swan last week tightened takeover laws when Chinalco announced its investment in London-based Rio Tinto, the world's third-largest mining company.
Swan has the power to reject both that deal and Minmetals' proposition with Melbourne-based OZ Minerals on national interest grounds. When Peter Costello was Australia's treasurer in 2001, he blocked Royal Dutch Shell Plc's bid for Woodside Petroleum Ltd. In 2004, Minmetals failed to reach an accord to buy Noranda Inc. amid objections from Canadian politicians.
Currency reserves
China's acquisition hunt is happening as the government ponders where to invest its currency reserves, which increased 27% in the past year to $US1.95 trillion, about 29% of the world's total. The country already owns $US696.2 billion in Treasuries, about 12% of the U.S.'s outstanding marketable debt and has been stung by losses of more than $US5 billion on $US10.5 billion invested in Blackstone Group and Morgan Stanley in New York and TPG in Fort Worth, Texas, since mid-2007.
``China has burnt its hands in the past buying liquid assets like Blackstone, but here they have the chance to buy tangible, useful assets,'' said Professor Liu Baocheng at the University of International Business & Economics in Beijing. ``There's no point putting money in the bank or in deposits with low returns.''
China consumes over a third of the world's aluminum output, a quarter of its copper production, almost a tenth of its oil and it accounts for more than half of the trading in iron ore. Last year, China bought $US211 billion worth of iron ore, refined copper, crude oil and alumina.
Borrowing problems
The deals by Chinalco and Minmetals, both based in Beijing and controlled by the state, come amid difficulties that Australian mining companies face in borrowing A$US26 billion to fund for new projects, as detailed in a September UBS report.
Chinalco agreed on Feb. 12 to spend $US19.5 billion to acquire debt and stakes in Rio Tinto's mines in Australia, Indonesia, the US and Chile. Rio was forced to seek a deal from its biggest shareholder to help reduce $US38.9 billion of debt largely incurred from its 2007 acquisition of Alcan Inc. Rio's high-level of debt was one of the reasons why BHP Billiton abandoned its $US66 billion hostile bid for Rio in November. Chinalco will increase its stake in Rio to 18% should it convert the debt.
Minmetals on Feb. 16 said it will take over OZ Minerals for $2.6 billion and assume debt of $1.2 billion.
In addition to Wuhan and Shagang, Zijin Mining Group, China's largest bullion producer, may spend as much as 20 billion yuan on acquisitions, Chen Jinghe, chairman of the Fujian-based company, said Nov. 11. Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. said on Dec. 5 that it is looking at deals, following an Australian Financial Review report that the Shandong-based company wanted to buy Felix Resources in Australia for more than $3 billion.
`Chunky deals'
Excluding the $US22 billion of spending this year, Chinese companies last year bought stakes or control of Australian iron ore producers Midwest Corp. and Murchison Metals and metals explorer Abra Mining. In August, China Shenhua Energy, the world's largest coal producer by value, won a coal exploration license in Australia for $300 million.
``I would've thought there is probably many billions of dollars still to come because China does have enormous financial firepower,'' said Peter Arden, an analyst in Melbourne at Ord Minnett, an affiliate of JPMorgan Chase. ``We will see some more chunky deals being done.''
http://business.smh.com.au/business/more-chinese-firms-in-the-hunt-for-mines-20090218-8b4b.html
Australia mulling uranium sales to India
According to Industry Minister, Ian Macfarlane, a final decision however on selling the nuclear fuel has yet to be made and is pending the outcome of the U.S.-India talks. India will need to sign a safeguards agreement with Australia before exports are allowed, he told Bloomberg.
Australia, holder of the world's biggest known uranium reserves, has previously refused to sell the nuclear fuel to India as the South Asian nation isn't a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Australia and China earlier this year ratified an agreement paving the way for A$250 million of uranium shipments to China.
"India has an impeccable record in terms of nuclear non- proliferation and there will be a very straight and very strict requirement in terms of the signing of a safeguard agreement between Australia and that country," Macfarlane said.
"We are at the moment waiting for the conclusion of the negotiation between the U.S. and India in terms of their nuclear agreement. On that basis cabinet will then consider it, he said."
The U.S. and India have spent almost two years negotiating a civilian nuclear accord, which would allow U.S. nuclear technology and fuel to be sold to help the Indian government supply its power industry.
The opposition Labor party, which leads the government in opinion polls ahead of a general election expected later this year, opposes uranium shipments to India unless the South Asian nation signs up to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), said Chris Evans, Labor's resources spokesman.
"I think the flirting with selling to India without them signing up to the NPT is highly dangerous," Evans said. "I think major producers understand that any breakdown in the NPT and those international safeguards will seriously undermine public confidence and support for uranium mining."
The Australian Greens also oppose uranium shipments to India, as well as to China and Russia, according to Senator Bob Brown, leader of the party. "The Howard will try to use the emerging US-India deal as an excuse to initiate uranium exports to India, but this deal is an absurd parody of non-proliferation protection, not an effective safeguard," said Christine Milne, climate spokeswoman for the Greens.
The Australian federal government will take legal advice on whether it may have the power to overrule bans on uranium mining licenses in the Labor-controlled states Australia and Queensland, Macfarlane said. The Federal Labor party in April voted to end a "no new mines" policy, yet Western Australia and Queensland have reiterated they won't allow uranium mines.
"Once we have that advice we will then consider whether or not common sense will prevail at a state level and whether or not we're in a position to use it," Macfarlane said.
http://www.msokorea.com/stock-market/0,6600,429808,00.html
Zimbabwe, India negotiate $60 mln mine mechanization deal
HARARE, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Zimbabwean government is on the verge of striking a deal with India worth 60 million U.S. dollars to revamp mine mechanization, local media The Chronicle reported on Tuesday.
The chief executive officer of the Zimbabwe Miners' Federation (ZMF) Wellington Takavarasha on Monday said the government is finalizing a deal with India worth 60 million dollars that will enhance mine mechanization, especially for the small-scale miners.
The mining industry contributes immensely toward the economy. However, the mining sector last year was reeling under various challenges with the gold sector in particular constrained by high production costs, power outages and shortage of critical inputs.
Takavarasha was optimistic that the mining sector would be revamped should the deal between India and Zimbabwe go through.
He said the ZMF was working to ensure that miners were fully equipped to ensure effectiveness and high output. Takavarasha said the mining sector would not be affected by the recent decision by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe to stop funding quasi-fiscal activities.
In the recently announced national budget and the monetary policy statements, the government and the central bank said the RBZ would be stopping engaging in quasi-fiscal activities as these were fuelling inflation.
The ZMF had approached the RBZ to bankroll the mine mechanization program as it had done with farm mechanization.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-02/17/content_10835353.htm
Other News – India
Forest fire engulfs 400 hectares in Amreli
2/18/2009 8:57:43 AM
Forest fire engulfs 400 hectares in Amreli
Its been 18 hours since a fire was reported yesterday (February 17) at around 1 pm in the Gir forest area of Amreli. Which is about 250 kilometers from Ahmedabad.
400 hectares of forest have been burnt down but there has been no reports of any human or animal casualties. The forest dept is trying to bring the fire under control.
They said that over 400 hectares of forest region, which houses deer, leopard and lions, was affected due to the fire. But there has been no reports of any human or animal casualties.
Fire in most of the area is under control, but the we are taking every precaution to stop the spread of the fire, the forest officials said.
However, there have been no reports of death or injury to any wildlife from the forest area, officials said.
Meanwhile, the leopard was caught from the Kangsa village of Dhari taluka of the district today, forest officials said.
They said that the leopard had ventured into the village insearch of food from the nearby forest region.
It was caught using a bait and will be released into the wild soon, forest official said.
(With inputs from Agencies)
http://www.timesnow.tv/NewsDtls.aspx?NewsID=29743
People not reporting for work a cause of less NREGA employment
Tags: New Delhi
Published: Wed, 18 Feb 2009 at 13:57 IST
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Government today said there are reports of families getting only 20 to 25 days of employment instead of the guaranteed 100 days under NREGA programme, but attributed it to people not reporting for work or going to take benefit of other welfare schemes.
The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) is a law for the benefit of below poverty line (BPL) families, under which they can demand work if and when they require, Minister for Rural Development Raghuvansh Prasad Singh said.
Work is given to BPL families when they demand for it, he said replying to supplementaries in Rajya Sabha.
"There have been reports where families have got only 20 to 25 days of work instead of the guaranteed 100 days of work. This may have happened because people sometimes also don't report for work, they go to tend their fields depending on the season, and they also go to take benefit of other government schemes," he said.
"Also, it has been found that reports on work given and implemented in many places do not come on time. This is being looked into," Singh said.
The Minister said during the first two phases of NREGA, when the scheme covered 330 districts of the country, 63 lakh BPL families had received 100 days of work. Since last year, when it was extended to all parts of the country, an additional 27 lakh families have been given 100 days of work.
Singh said the government has not yet decided to increase the stipulated period of work under NREGA from the present 100 days as it feels the existing provision is "enough".
No cheer for India’s children in interim budget
February 17th, 2009 - 7:03 pm ICT by IANS -
New Delhi, Feb 17 (IANS) The interim budget for 2009-10, presented in the Lok Sabha Monday, has brought down allocation of various child welfare programmes as compared to previous years, says a budget analysis done by a city-based children’s rights organisation.
“On issues of health, education, protection and nutrition, the children have either received less in 2009-10 or their share has remained the same,” says the analysis report by Haq: Centre for Child Rights.
“From a share of 5.28 percent of the Union Budget in 2008-09, which declined sharply to 4.53 percent in the revised figures for 2008-09 even as general government expenditures went up, the total share of children in the interim budget has gone down sharply to only 4.32 per cent,” it added.
“Even as the pie gets smaller for the average Indian in a tough year, children get even less of it,” said Enakshi Ganguly, co-director of Haq.
“Why else would it (the United Progressive Alliance or UPA government) nearly halve allocation for the scheme on improvement in the working condition of women and child labour under the labour ministry to Rs.90 crore (Rs.900 million) in 2009-10? ”
This, she said, was despite the government managing to spend only Rs.146.63 crore out of the Rs.156 crore granted in the 2008-09 budget.
Moreover, Ganguly said, the 2001 census acknowledges that the number of economically active children between the ages of 5-14 rose to 12.6 million in that year, accounting for over 7 percent of the population.
Other flagship schemes of the UPA government have met the same fate.
“Take Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), the aim of which is to put every child in school. The budgeted outlay of Rs.13,100 crore for SSA in 2009-10 remains the same as what had been budgeted for and spent in the current year.
“Even in the moderately successful Mid-day Meals Scheme, which now covers all school children in classes I to VIII, the outlay remains exactly the same in both the years, Rs.8,000 crore,” said the Haq report.
Ganguly said about 98 percent of India’s habitations have primary schools, but the quality of elementary education “remains abysmal and dropouts remain high”.
Between 2003-04 and 2008-09, the allocation for this programme increased by 571 percent. “Not anymore.”
According to the Haq report, the only scheme that has bucked the trend of neglect is the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), which has actually seen a small rise in its outlay in 2009-10, a 6.3 percent increase to Rs.6,705 crore.
The total budgeted expenditure for child welfare schemes of the Department of Women and Child Development has gone up marginally to Rs.6,517 crore in 2009-10 from Rs.6,507 crore in 2008-09.
Similarly, the total budget for elementary education has seen a paltry increase of 0.45 percent in 2009-10, although a new scheme called the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyaan has been introduced with an allocation of Rs.1,143.46 crore.
“Accounting for the severe inflation that we saw in 2008, it is possible to argue that the government is actually spending less on children in 2009-10, a year that promises, according to the budget speech, to be one of extreme adjustment and hardship,” the report says.
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