Mining – India 1
1. Govt clears way for bauxite mining in Vizag Agency 1
2. Sesa Goa buys Dempo group’s mining assets 2
3. Yeddy Regime Urges Centre to Revise Royalty on Major Minerals 3
4. State seeks hike in royalty on minerals 5
5. Give mining permits only to firms with steel plants: court tells State 5
6. J'khand to renew Chiria mines lease 6
7. Barda sanctuary faces threat from mining 7
Mining – International 8
8. Assembly gets hot with bauxite 8
9. Obama mine limits threaten coal output - analyst 10
10. AG: Pittsylvania County cannot impose uranium mining ban 10
11. Murray safe from new mines 12
12. [headlines] Philippines: Over 18,000 girls and boys engaged in mining 12
Other News – India 15
13. Ravi Rebbapragada Receives National leadership Award 15
14. Polavaram water: GVMC to finalise consultant 16
15. Steps afoot to distribute forest land 17
16. ‘Awareness on RTI Act increasing’ 17
17. Vedanta to support 600 anganwadi Centres in Rayagada 18
18. No more excuses to eliminate child labour 18
Mining – India
Govt clears way for bauxite mining in Vizag Agency
12 Jun 2009, 0143 hrs IST, TNN
NARSIPATNAM (Visakhapatnam): Buoyed by the verdict in the recent polls, the Congress government has made its intentions clear by going ahead with
the bauxite mining project by laying a road from Jerrela in G K Veedhi mandal in Vizag Agency to Tallapalem in Kasimkota mandal.
It's in Jerrela where the bauxite deposits are located. Sources said the Narsipatnam roads and building division is already on the job and a land acquisition notification would be issued soon for laying the 85-km road to transport the bauxite mineral in Jerrela area to Anrak and Jindal companies through AP Mineral Development Corporation (APMDC).
"It looks like the road is being cleared for the contentious bauxite mining in the Agency area despite strong opposition from the tribals and Maoists. This is nothing but pandering to the rich mining lobby at the cost of poor tribals," V S Krishna, Human Rights Forum leader, said.
Sources said the way the tribal sub-plan (TSP) grant of Rs 50 crore was rushed through to hasten the mining works in Narsipatnam R&B division is only a tip of the iceberg. Proposals for works worth Rs 150 crore have also been approved by the state government to widen the road to facilitate free lorry movement. "The initial plan is to ensure movement of around 100 lorries to transport the bauxite mineral to Anrak," sources said.
The APMDC would supply the mineral to the proposed refinery at Makavarapalem towards which the road is being laid. Sources said the road would be 10 metres in width in the plains and seven metres in the ghats.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Hyderabad/Govt-clears-way-for-bauxite-mining-in-Vizag-Agency/articleshow/4646613.cms
Sesa Goa buys Dempo group’s mining assets
Ramnath Subbu
The size of the deal is valued at Rs. 1,750 crore
________________________________________
The transaction will be met through internal accruals
VSD owns mining reserves of 70 m tonnes of iron ore
________________________________________
MUMBAI: Sesa Goa, a majority-owned subsidiary of Vedanta Resources (Vedanta), the London-based FTSE 100 metal and mining group, and the Dempo Group on Thursday signed a definitive share purchase agreement under which Sesa has acquired all the outstanding common shares of V S Dempo & Co. Pvt. Ltd. (VSD), which in turn, also holds 100 per cent equity shares of Dempo Mining Corporation Pvt. Ltd. and 50 per cent equity shares of Goa Maritime Pvt. Ltd.
The transaction is for a total consideration of Rs. 1,750 crore, on a debt-free and cash-free basis and includes working capital of Rs. 145 crore.
The transaction has been funded by Sesa from its existing cash resources. As on 31 March 2009, Sesa had cash resources of Rs. 4,143 crore.
VSD owns or has the rights to mineable reserves and resources estimated at 70 million tonnes of iron ore in Goa. VSD’s Goa mining assets include processing plants, barges, jetties, transhippers and loading capacities at Mormugao port.
It produced 3.94 million tonnes of iron ore and sold 4.36 million tonnes in the year ended March 31, 2009. VSD’s unaudited revenue and earnings before interest and depreciation in 2008-09 were about Rs. 976 crore and Rs. 417 crore, respectively. VSD is one of the largest exporters of iron ore from Goa.
“We are highly delighted with this opportunity to consolidate our iron ore business. The integration of Sesa and VSD’s operations will achieve great synergy,” said Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal in a press statement.
“We are extremely pleased to have reached this agreement with Sesa which will ensure long-term sustenance of VSD’s operations,” said Dempo Group Chairman and Managing Director Shrinivas V. Dempo.
VSD is a logical and strategic fit with Sesa’s existing iron ore business and is expected to create a significant long-term value for all shareholders through leveraging Vedanta’s proven mining and project management skills to develop and optimise VSD’s mines and plants; access to attractive mining assets with long life; and synergising with Sesa’s existing iron ore operations
Ambit Corporate Finance acted as financial advisors and J Sagar & Associates acted as legal advisors to VSD. Luthra and Luthra acted as legal advisors to Sesa Goa in this transaction.
Sesa is India’s largest exporter of iron ore in the private sector. The company is a majority owned and controlled subsidiary of Vedanta Resources. Sesa has mining operations in Goa, Karnataka and Orissa and it also operates a 2.80 lakh tonnes per annum metallurgical coke plant and a 2.50-lakh tonne pig iron plant in Goa.
The Dempo group is a Goa based, diverse industrial house.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/12/stories/2009061255151400.htm
Yeddy Regime Urges Centre to Revise Royalty on Major Minerals
BSY regime urges Centre to revise royalty on major minerals
From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network
BANGALORE, JUNE 10: Even as Karnataka chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and his miffed ministerial colleagues comprising mainly the Bellary mining lords G Janaradhana Reddy, G Karunakar Reddy and B Sriramulu as well as their flock of dissident BJP legislators are yet to iron out their differences, the state government has reiterated its demand with the Centre for a revision of the royalty rates on major minerals.
"The revision of royalty on major minerals is long overdue. The last revision was done in October 2007 and the delay has deprived the state of a major source of non-tax revenue," said former union minister and Karnataka’s special representative in Delhi V Dhananjaya Kumar.
Pointing out that Karnataka was getting a meagre revenue of Rs 80 crore a year from its exports of iron ore and other major minerals, Kumar said the state would have earned Rs 1,032 crore additional revenue for the one year period from October 2007 till September 2008 if the royalty rates were fixed at 10% ad valorem The chief minister, who visited Delhi recently and met Union finance minister Pranab Kumar Mukherjee and other ministers, had submitted a memorandum seeking a revision in royalty rates, Kumar said pointing out that the government had only reiterated its earlier demand.
An expert committee constituted by the Centre has recommended the pattern on which the royalty rates are to be revised, he said pointing out extraction and transportation of minerals cause extensive damage to the environment in mining areas. The capacity of the state government to meet these costs would be strengthened if the royalty rates were revised without any further delay, he said.
Answering questions, he said the demand for revision of royalty on major minerals had been made by the previous H D Kumaraswamy-led JD(S)-BJP coalition regime and there was no need to read any special meaning. ``Many of the present ministers were part of the previous government too,’’ he said.
Kumar sought to downplay questions regarding the spurt of dissidence in the ruling party and the reported demands by Reddy brothers seeking the axing of a few ministers and said the chief minister was bound to accept such demand.
The state BJP president D V Sadananda Gowda had written to all ministers and party leaders expressing concern over the recent media reports regarding dissensions in the Cabinet and appealed to all to express their views at party forums. The media reports on differences of opinions among the ministers adversely affected the image of the government as well as the party, Kumar said.
Both Janardhana Reddy and Karunakar Reddy did not turn up to the conference of divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners and CEOs of zilla panchayats on Tuesday and also the recent Vikas Sankalp Utsav to mark the BJP government’s first anniversary. The youngest brother of the Reddys, G Somashekara Reddy, who is BJP MLA from Bellary city, had also publicly aired his grievances against the chief minister.
However, Kumar said the situation in the state did not warrant party high command’s intervention.``There is no need for senior leader Arun Jaitley to visit the city,’’ he said making it clear that Jaitely will not be coming.
Kumar pointed out that Karnataka would need Rs 36,000 crore investment for improving Bangalore’s infrastructure facilities to suit its status as a growing metropolis over the next six years and the state government was not in a positon to raise the necessary funds.
There was an estimated gap of about Rs 16,000 crore, which need to be mobilised within the next 2-3 years. The Government has urged the centre to release a special grant of Rs 8,000 crore to meet 50 per cent of the estimated resource gap for the development of infrastructure in Bangalore, he said.
The chief minister, in his memorandum submitted to Mukherjee, had demanded reimbursement of Rs 1800 crore borne by the State government for providing debt relief to the farmers in 2007-08. The centre announced the debt waiver scheme for farmers in 2008-09 and the farmers who had borrowed loans from the cooperative societies received benefit to the tune of Rs 500 crore, Kumar said.
The Government sought immediate release of Rs. 500 crore from the centre on ad hoc basis to take up works in 84 taluks of Karnataka affected by drought in 2008. Though the State had submitted a memorandum seeking central assistance of Rs 2019.55 crore, only Rs 90 crore had been released, he said.
The government was hopeful that the centre would clear pending projects of the State which would help to infrastructure projects. Works on several railway projects have been waiting for the environmental clearance of the Centre. Union Minister of State for Environment and Forest Jairam Ramesh agreed to clear all hurdles for expediting implementation of railway and road projects of the State.
http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=61048&n_tit=Yeddy++Regime+Urges+Centre+to+Revise+Royalty+on+Major+Minerals
State seeks hike in royalty on minerals
Special Correspondent
It was to have been revised in 2007
________________________________________
Memorandum on hike in royalty submitted to Centre
State receives only Rs. 80 crore a year as royalty revenue
________________________________________
BANGALORE: The State Government has urged the Centre to fix royalty on major minerals at 10 per cent, ad valorem, to enhance non-tax revenue.
Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, V. Dhananjay Kumar, Karnataka’s Special Representative in New Delhi, said revision of royalty rates on major minerals was due since October 2007. The delay had deprived the State of a major source of non-tax revenue. If royalty on minerals had been fixed at 10 per cent, ad valorem, the State would have received additional revenue of Rs. 1,032 crore during the October 2007 to September 2008 period. The State now received only Rs. 80 crore a year in revenue from minerals, he said.
An expert committee constituted by the Centre has recommended the pattern on which royalty rates are to be revised. The extraction and transportation of minerals causes extensive damage to the environment. The capacity of the State Government to meet these costs will be strengthened if royalty rates are revised without further delay, Mr. Kumar said.
Chief Minister B.S Yeddyurappa met Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee last week and submitted a memorandum seeking hike in royalty, Mr. Kumar said.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/12/stories/2009061253460400.htm
Give mining permits only to firms with steel plants: court tells State
Staff Reporter
BANGALORE: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday directed the State to ensure that permits for mining iron ore were be given to only those industries and firms that had steel plants.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice P.D. Dinakaran and Justice V.G. Sabhahit passed the order on a public interest litigation (PIL) petition by Satyamurthy, a resident of Bangalore.
The petitioner submitted that the State was losing revenue heavily as it was not directly involved in mining iron ore. He said while the State was being paid a measly sum as royalty, private firms that had been granted license to mine iron ore in Bellary and other places were making huge profits.
The court was told that most of the ore was being exported to other countries, including China. Many steel units in India had either closed down or are operating below capacity as there is no sufficient and regular supply of iron ore.
The Bench orally observed that it had all along been asking the State to ensure that permits are given to companies that have industrial plants. This would not only generate employment but also ensure that the State’s rich mineral wealth remained within Karnataka and the benefits were reaped by the local people.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/12/stories/2009061253960500.htm
J'khand to renew Chiria mines lease
11 Jun 2009, 2311 hrs IST, TNN
RANCHI: Putting an end to speculation on the long-pending issue of lease renewal to Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), the largest steel
producer of the country, the Jharkhnad government has agreed to facilitate the renewal of the lease for Chiria mines to the company.
Iron ore supply from Chiria mines would be vital for the steel major as it plans to expand its capacity to around 26 million tonnes. The existing capacity of SAIL is around 14.61 million tonnes.
Confirming this, state mines and geology secretary S K Satpathy said the government is committed to help SAIL in every possible way. "The company will facilitate in the renewal of the mining lease for Chiria so that SAIL's requirement is met," said Satpathy.
He said there are altogether 17 mines in the Chiria reserve. Depending on the need of the steel major, the government will give mining lease.
Chiria mines in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand is estimated to have nearly two billion tonnes of iron ore with ferrous content of over 62 per cent. The reserve, according to estimates, has best ferrous content ore in the country and global players, including ArcelorMittal, were eyeing mining lease.
"The state government has also decided to give lease for mining in Chiria only to public sector undertakings (PSUs) or joint ventures. A joint venture can be between a PSU and a private company or between two PSUs," said Satpathy.
The state government has also agreed to transfer the lease of the four mines that were originally with the erstwhile Indian Iron and Steel Company (IISCO). The state government had earlier maintained that the leases of mines that originally belonged to IISCO, which was acquired by SAIL, cannot be transferred to SAIL.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Ranchi/Jkhand-to-renew-Chiria-mines-lease/articleshow/4646245.cms
Barda sanctuary faces threat from mining
11 Jun 2009, 2216 hrs IST, Vijaysinh Parmar, TNN
RAJKOT: At a time when the state government is mulling shifting lions from Gir to Barda wildlife sanctuary in Porbandar and Jamnagar, information
sought under the Right to Information Act (RTI) revealed rampant mining activities in the surrounding areas.
The sanctuary is spread over 192.31 sq km falling in Jamnagar and Porbandar districts. According to Wildlife Protection Act (1972), mining is not permissible in 5 km periphery of the sanctuary.
An RTI application filed by Bhanu Odedara, a resident of Porbandar, has revealed how a number of mining licences have been given within the 5-km area of Barda wildlife sanctuary since 2002 till date.
As per the information provided by state geological department, 21 permissions for mining around the forest area have been granted since 2002 many of which were given without a no-objection certificate (NoC) from the state forest department. There are around 38 more applications pending.
Forest department officials in Barda said they have not issued any NoC to carry out mining operations near the sanctuary.
Odedara said he also sought information about name of the lease holders, locations and survey numbers as well as area of the mines. He also sought to know how many mines leases were given or renewed by mines department without the NoC of the forest department and the period of the leases.
Officials in the state environment and forest department said Barda is the only ecological spot in the state, where more than 650 flowering plants have been recorded. The sanctuary was also home to Asiatic lion in the past apart. Today, it houses sambar, chital and chinkara.
In 1979, the reserve forest of Barda was earmarked as a sanctuary. "There is a great danger to ecology of the sanctuary and environmental degradation of the area if these mining activities are not stopped. It will affect animals, too. If the government considers Barda as the second home of Asiatic lions, it should stop mining operations immediately," said Odedara.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Rajkot/Barda-sanctuary-faces-threat-from-mining/articleshow/4645988.cms
Mining – International
Assembly gets hot with bauxite
14:31' 12/06/2009 (GMT+7)
VietNamNet Bridge – Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang received the highest number of questions from National Assembly deputies compared to other cabinet members, 28, focusing on six groups of issues. Hoang’s question and answer session on June 11 was very hot with questions about bauxite mining projects and the increase of electricity charges.
Deputy Nguyen Dang Trung from HCM City started the session with a very short question. Article 2, Resolution 66 dated 2006 of the NA stipulates that projects of over 20 trillion dong ($1.1 billion) must be submitted to the NA for approval. The bauxite mining projects in the Central Highlands are very big, so why didn’t the Industry and Trade Ministry ask the government to submit the projects to the NA?
Hoang said the Tan Rai bauxite mining project, the Nhan Co alumina project, the project to build a port in Ke Ga and a railway from Dak Nong to Binh Thuan are independent projects. For example, the port and railway projects will be used to serve the people. These projects have investment capital of less than 20 trillion each so they are not subject to Resolution 66. He said projects that will be implemented in the future, such as Nhan Co 2, 3 and 4, which have capital of over 20 trillion dong, will be submitted to the NA.
Deputy Nguyen Dang Trung disagreed with Hoang, saying that the bauxite mining project includes three phases and 12 projects which are closely attached to one another. The capital for each project is less than 20 trillion dong because the Industry and Trade Ministry chopped them down into small pieces to not have to submit them to the NA.
Trung emphasised that the bauxite project is very important, and must be considered in three aspects: impacts and consequences on the environment, economic effectiveness and defence.
He repeated the Politburo’s conclusion about the bauxite project: The Central Highlands is an extremely significant and sensitive area for national defence. “I think that the whole bauxite mining project must be submitted to the NA,” Trung said.
Deputy Nguyen Van Ba from Khanh Hoa province agreed: “It was wrong that the Industry and Trade divided the bauxite project into smaller projects and said that they are independent. These projects, for example, the railway project, would be unnecessary without the bauxite mining project,” Ba said.
Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang said that it was not the idea of his ministry and the ministry didn’t have the authority to separate the bauxite project into smaller pieces. That was the government’s plan.
He said that the railway project is unnecessary in the early phase of alumina production. The alumina output in the initial period will be small so it can be transported by trucks. He affirmed that the railway project was planned to serve not only the alumina plant but also the people.
Deputy Pham Thi Loan from Hanoi asked about the economic advantages of this project. The government plans to restrict exports of raw products as much as possible. The bauxite project only plans on producing alumina from bauxite ore and turning alumina into aluminum is a long process.
Hoang said bauxite ore in the Central Highlands contains 40 percent alumina. After the refinery process, the final product will be alumina, an intermediate product, not a raw material. He said it is suitable to export alumina and then build an aluminum plant.
Raising electricity charges to improve awareness of thrift
Another big issue that deputies asked the Industry and Trade Minister about was the increase of electricity prices.
Deputy Dang Thi My Huong from Ninh Thuan province asked, when the ministry raises power prices, especially in urban areas, does it consider the difficulties of students and workers who are living in hired rooms when the landlords raise power charges? Raising power prices during peak hours during a financial crisis also hurts producers.
Hoang explained: maintaining low power prices will not encourage investment in the power sector and raise awareness of thrift. He affirmed that the ministry always chooses the best time to increase the prices to keep the economy stable and ensure the interests of the poor, while enhancing the awareness of practicing thrift in using energy among the community and building a competitive power market.
He said that peak and low hours in using electricity were defined based on this fact. The ministry may raise the power price further during peak hours to encourage producers to move production to low hours.
About difficulties for businesses and people, the minister promised to review and make adjustments.
Deputy Pham Thi Loan also asked Hoang about the sluggishness in fighting against the monopoly in the power sector.
The minister explained that organisational reforms of the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) group must be carried out very carefully. Vietnam is short of power. Perhaps next year the country will have preventive power, which will be modest. This factor must be taken into account in restructuring the power sector.
VietNamNet/TT/ DT
http://english.vietnamnet.vn/reports/2009/06/852658/
Obama mine limits threaten coal output - analyst
Fri Jun 12, 2009 3:23am IST
HOUSTON, June 11 (Reuters) - An Obama administration inter-agency deal announced Thursday to regulate mountaintop coal mining could reduce production 50 million to 70 million tons a year over the next three to five years, an analyst said.
The agreement between the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of the Interior and the Army Corps of Engineers could "slow permits for new production to a trickle," wrote analyst Kevin Book of ClearView Energy Partners LLC.
"It doesn't mean you can't get a permit, but you'll never be able to replace reserves if you're waiting through environmental impact statements," Book said, calling the move a "major victory" for environmental groups.
Mountaintop removal -- used to reach seams too thin for underground mining -- has been a hot issue since environmental lawsuits led to a U.S. court order that halted government permitting of such mines. A U.S. appeals court overturned the ruling in February, stirring calls for an administrative ban.
The coal industry has decried environmental groups' attacks on the mining technique as a threat to the economy and energy security.
Environmental advocacy groups, meanwhile, complained that the administration agreement does not stop mountaintop mining altogether.
"Until the White House announces that it will stop the blowing up of mountains and burying of streams we cannot support their policies, regardless of what process is used to review the mines on a case-by-case basis," said Joan Mulhern, senior legislative counsel at Earthjustice.
Analysts at FBR Capital Markets said the impact will be less than supposed because 42 mountaintop mining permits have been issued this year, more than twice the total in the past two years, and 110 more are pending.
"We believe that greater scrutiny is less likely to impact the larger companies participating in mountaintop mining," wrote FBR's David Khani and Luther Lu. (Reporting by Bruce Nichols; Editing by Christian Wiessner)
http://in.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idINN1164243220090611
AG: Pittsylvania County cannot impose uranium mining ban
By John Crane
Published: June 11, 2009
The state attorney general’s office says Pittsylvania County cannot impose a ban on uranium mining.
Late last month, the Board of Supervisors asked state Sen. Robert Hurt, R-Chatham, to seek an opinion from Virginia’s attorney general regarding the legality of a county ban on uranium mining. Hurt contacted the attorney general’s office on behalf of the board, said a lawyer there restated the office’s position expressed earlier.
Delegate Riley Ingram, R-62nd District, had made a similar request to the attorney general’s office last fall. An opinion from the office on Nov 14, 2008, states that a “locality may not enact (an) ordinance that preempts or nullifies state or federal law; such ordinance would be unconstitutional.”
The Board of Supervisors requested Hurt’s assistance on the matter in a May 28 letter after local uranium-mining opponents asked the board to consider a county ban on mining.
County Administrator Dan Sleeper said the Board’s Legislative Committee will discuss the opinion at its next meeting Tuesday.
Virginia Uranium Inc. seeks to mine and mill a 119-million pound uranium ore deposit at Coles Hill, about six miles northeast of Chatham. Virginia currently has a moratorium on uranium mining. The Virginia Coal and Energy Commission’s Uranium Mining Subcommittee is overseeing a study by the National Academy of Sciences to determine whether the practice can be done safely in the commonwealth.
The attorney general’s office’s opinion also mentions the state’s “Dillon rule,” which says that municipalities and counties can exercise only those powers given to them by the state.
Board of Supervisors Chairman Coy Harville said the board wanted to “set the record straight” with the attor-ney general on the subject. Harville said the question of whether the county can ban uranium mining is settled.
“To me, it’s a dead issue,” he said.
The issue took on added significance last year after the town of Halifax passed a chemical-trespass ordinance in 2008 and the town of Chatham mulled a similar ordinance. Chatham also sought and received a similar opinion from the attorney general’s office last year.
http://www.godanriver.com/gdr/news/local/danville_news/article/ag_pittsylvania_county_cannot_impose_uranium_mining_ban/11716/
Murray safe from new mines
CRAIG TRELOAR
10/06/2009 11:30:00 PM
River Murray water will not be available to new mining operations on Eyre Peninsula, according to SA Water's Long Term Plan for Eyre Region.
SA Water's projections for future water demand have not allowed for any water to be allocated to new mine operators.
According to the plan, mining companies will be expected to source their own water for extraction and mining operations.
In some situations, SA Water may be in a position to provide water requirements associated with trial or pilot mining schemes.
Any supply provided by SA Water will be dependent on:
• SA Water's ability to maintain suitable supply to existing customers (including allowing for reasonable growth in this customer base).
• The availability of the resource and infrastructure capacity in SA Water's supply system at the time of application.
• The conditions and legislative requirements of licenses issued to SA Water to allow it to provide a public water supply.
• Specific arrangements with SA Water for full cost recovery of any augmentation to the supply or resource required to meet demand from a mining venture.
SA Water will assess applications from mining companies for water requirements associated with trial or pilot mining schemes on a case-by-case basis.
SA Water will also assess opportunities to partner with mining companies on new resources (such as desalination plants).
http://www.whyallanewsonline.com.au/news/local/news/general/murray-safe-from-new-mines/1538934.aspx
[headlines] Philippines: Over 18,000 girls and boys engaged in mining
2009-06-11 11:36:07
International Labour Organization Press release
10 June 2009
MANILA (ILO Online) – Together with other children, Aiza stands in the mercury-laden water, shovelling mud or bending over a large pan in search of a tiny speck of gold. She earns 20 pesos or half a dollar for a small bit of gold the size of a grain of rice.
Aiza learned to search for gold from her mother and her 6-year old sister is now learning from her. She had to quit school at an early age to contribute to the family income and provide for her mother’s medical needs.
The search for gold sent many children away from home, school and play to the dangers of the mines.
“Our bodies ache, but we have to go on. I was able to reach up to fifth grade only. I don’t want my children to be like me. I want them to finish school and find a job they want but I don’t have money for their education,” says Aiza’s mother (Note 1).
Rodel was luckier than Aiza, maybe because he is a boy. A new ILO report prepared for the World Day Against Child Labour 2009 finds that the danger of girls being forced into child labour is linked to evidence that in many countries families give preference to boys when making decisions on the education of their children.
Rodel received his college diploma last month. But looking back to his past as a child labourer in small scale mining when he was 10, the dark mining tunnel still scares him today.
“I was so tired, so weak since I had to work at night and go to school the next day”, remembers Rodel. He reached a point of working full time when his parents could not afford to send him to school anymore. Every day, Rodel had to work for 8-12 hours or longer to earn a maximum of US$1-2 a day.
His most dangerous experience turned out to be a real eye-opener when his father used dynamite to blast rocks inside the tunnel. “I had to run and get out but it was too dark. All of a sudden, I tumbled and fell about 10 feet. I felt so miserable, and then I realized that I didn’t like what I was doing. I just wanted to go back to school”, recalls Rodel.
A Survey on Children conducted by the National Statistics Office of the Philippines in 2001 revealed a total of 4 million working children aged 5-17 years in the Philippines, of which 2.4 million were in dangerous work. Over 18,000 children are engaged in mining and quarrying. Half of them are 10 to 14 years old.
Like Aiza and Rodel, most of these children work in small scale mining, which use low technology methods and do not follow safety standards. Children in mining often complain of body pains due to heavy loads. They are exposed to dangers of landslides and falling rocks. Moreover, child labourers cannot shield themselves from large amounts of dust and mercury-based chemicals in mining sites which can cause serious brain damage.
A health assessment of the Occupational Safety and Health Center and the ILO involving 80-100 children in a small scale mining area revealed that some children were contaminated with mercury. Their growth was stunted and they do poorly in school. They developed skin diseases, cough, colds and fever. Often, they quit school to work all day in small scale mining.
“The International Labour Organization and its partners stand for a world where no girls or boys are forced to work at the cost of dropping out of school as young as 5 years old and risking their health or even their lives,” says Linda Wirth, Director of the ILO Subregional Office for South-East Asia and the Pacific.
“Working children like Aiza and Rodel may earn 40 or 50 pesos (US$1) a day and it may be enough to keep a family from falling apart. Still, a few pesos cannot change their world in the way an education can,” says Wirth.
From being a child labourer, Rodel became a child advocate. At 14 years old, Rodel was chosen as child advocate after joining the Summer Youth Camp of the ILO International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) and the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM).
He started out representing his town and province until he was elected as President of all child advocates in the entire Bicol region. “Our number one advocacy was to end child labour in the Philippines. We joined the first Global March against Child Labour. We marched on the streets with our banners on Let’s Work Together against Child Labour,” recalls Rodel.
The Philippines was the first country to start the Global March against Child Labour in 1998, bringing together both government and non-government organizations, trade unions, teachers, families, child advocates and individuals in the fight against child labour. After the Global March, Rodel had the chance to go back to school. “I received a full scholarship from Senator Loren Legarda through the endorsement of ILO IPEC,” he says.
Having left the dark tunnel of the mineshaft, 25-year old Rodel can now see a brighter future ahead. But he remembers Aiza and the other child labourers.
“After graduation, I want to find a decent job ...but I also want to help other children to get out of child labour. If we allow children to work, then they will remain uneducated. If child labourers do not get a chance to return to school, then nothing will happen in this country because they are our future.” concludes Rodel.
--> Learn more about child labour and find learning resources at HREA's page on World Day Against Child Labour.
http://www.hrea.org/index.php?base_id=2&language_id=1&headline_id=9369
Other News – India
Ravi Rebbapragada Receives National leadership Award
BY: chnarendra
New Delhi : India | about 2 hours ago
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VIEWS: 17
Lakshmipath Singhania-IIM Lucknow National leadership Award - 2008 for Community Service and Social Upliftment was presented to Ravi Rebbapragada of NGO Samata, under the Young Leaders category. The award was given away by the honourable Vice President of India, Shri Hamid Ansari at Vignan Bhavan, New Delhi on 10th June 2009. He was selected by a jury of eminent leaders under the chairmanship of Shri K.C.Pant, from among a wide spectrum of nominees from the country.
The Award was given in recognition of his outstanding achievements, commitment and vision as “he brings hope to a large part of society for the betterment of their lives with his visionary and bold initiatives.” At the award ceremony in the presence of many stalwarts, Shri Hariprasad Singhania, President of J.K.organisations, appreciated Mr.Ravi’s unsparing zeal and devoted hard work against all odds for delivering social justice to adivasis for their land rights. He hoped that this recognition of his meritorious achievement is an encouragement and impetus to continue the good work, enduring stature and leadership to work for the upliftment of the most deprived sections of our country.
The award comprising a trophy and a citation has been instituted by IIM, Lucknow to recognise and honour leaders and young leaders who have exhibited exceptional leadership through pursuit of excellence in community service, business and science & technology.
Speaking on the occasion Mr.Ravi Rebbapragada, Founder of Samata said “I am happy that my work with the most deprived sections of society is recognized by IIM-Lucknow and Lakshipat Sighania National Leadership Award committee consisting of eminent personalities. I dedicate this prestigious award to my parents, the tribal communities, my team members, my friends and well wishers and last but not the least my wife and children. My special thanks to Dr. EAS Sarma who found it fit to nominate me for this award.”
The jury for the awards included personalities like K C Pant, former deputy chairman, planning commission; V Krishnamurthy, chairman, National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council; K Kasturirangan, director, National Institute of Advanced Studies; Hari Shankar Singhania, president, JK Organisation; Jamshed J Irani, chairman, board of governors, IIM-L and director, Tata Sons Limited; Prof Devi Singh, director, IIM-L among others.
http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/3432595-ravi-rebbapragada-receives-national-leadership-award
Polavaram water: GVMC to finalise consultant
G.V. Prasada Sarma
‘Tenders called for survey on creating storage space’
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Project aims to supply 24 tmcft water to city
Consultancy expected to submit report in
six months
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VISAKHAPATNAM: The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation is likely to finalise a consultant soon for a survey for creating storage capacity for the water from the Polavaram (Indirasagar) Left Main Canal that is part of the multi-purpose Polavaram project.
“Tenders have been called for the survey on creating the storage space. There are a number of issues involved. We do not know whether government land is available or not. Depending upon the need private land is to be acquired,” Municipal Commissioner B. Sridhar told The Hindu on Tuesday.
The Polavaram LMC is intended to provide 24 tmc ft of water to the city for its domestic and industrial needs. Since the irrigation canal will be closed for six months and water is to be drawn from the floodwater of Godavari, creation of storage capacity for 13 tmc ft is required to make the best use of it.
Depending upon depth, to store 1 tmc ft of water 1,000 acres to 1,500 acres of land is required. The LMC runs for a stretch of 70 km in the district and one of the packages in it includes 20 km of Yeleru canal that brings water to the city from the Godavari.
With the project getting all the required clearances, the LMC is scheduled for completion by 2012.
“We will expedite the process (for creating storage),” Mr. Sridhar adds.
“The final approval for deciding upon the consultant has to be given by the Visakhapatnam Industrial Water Supply Company (VIWSCO) at its board meeting,” said GVMC Chief Engineer B. Jayarami Reddy.
The consultancy will survey a 150 km stretch and it is expected to submit its detailed project reports in six months.
He said that if land was not available within the district, it would be considered in the other districts.
The GVMC Commissioner is the Chairman of VIWSCO. He is also the convener of the Task Force on the utilisation of Godavari water while the District Collector is its Chairman.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/12/stories/2009061257830300.htm
Steps afoot to distribute forest land
VISAKHAPATNAM: Preparations are on to distribute 60,600.80 acres of forest land to 28,563 girijan beneficiaries under the Recognition of Forest Rights Act 2006, Revenue Divisional Officer of Paderu K.R.D. Prasada Rao informed on Thursday.
There are 1.02 lakh acres of forestland being cultivated by 1.20 lakh girijan farmers in the district. During the first phase, title deeds of 89,493 acres of land would be distributed.
To start with, the District Level Committee approved distribution of 60,600.80 acres of land to 28,563 farmers in eight girijan mandals and the process is under way.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/12/stories/2009061258780300.htm
‘Awareness on RTI Act increasing’
Staff Reporter
Union government actively considering releasing Rs. 10 RTI stamp: Commissioner
SANGAREDDY: Mr. Dileep Reddy, one of Commissioners of Right to Information Act (RTI), on Thursday said that the Union government has been actively considering releasing of Rs. 10 RTI stamp to make it convenient to the information seekers under the Act to pay the fee.
Speaking to reporters after a two-hour long meeting with the officials of various departments at the Zilla Parishad meeting hall, Mr. Dileep Reddy said that as of now citizens can use five modes of payments to pay the required fee including that of cash, postal order and demand draft for seeking information as a right.
He said that the commission had recently submitted its annual report to the State government and this was the only commission that had submitted annual report for the three consecutive years in the country.
Stating that the awareness levels among the citizens on RTI Act has been increasing, the Commissioner said that number of applicants had increased from 8,000 in 2006 to 62,000 in 2008. Last year 54,000 applications were disposed of.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Dileep Reddy has visited 16 offices in the district head quarters and later interacted with the officials. The meeting was attended by Collector Peeyush Kumar, Joint Collector Ram Shankar Naik and Superintendent of Police Mohd. Iqbal.
Addressing the officials, Mr. Dileep Reddy advised them to furnish the information sought by applicants under the Act in the stipulated time period to avoid any embarrassment.
“The honeymoon is over. The intervention of the commission for failing to dispose of any genuine case will attract imposing of penalty on the concerned officer, which would harm the career prospects,” he said. He also suggested the officials to prepare manuals in Telugu language for the convenience of the people.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/12/stories/2009061252670300.htm
Vedanta to support 600 anganwadi Centres in Rayagada
BS Reporter / Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar June 12, 2009, 0:52 IST
Vedanta Aluminium Ltd (VAL) entered into a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the district administration of Rayagada and Vedanta Foundation to support 600 anganwadi centres in 5 blocks of Rayagada district.
The project named ‘Bal Chetna’ programme will cover all the anganwadi centres in Muniguda, Bissamcuttack, Kolnara, Kesingpur block and Rayagada block and will benefit 30,000 children in these areas. Under the project, children up to 2.5 years will be given micro-nutrient supplement and children in the age group of 2.5 to 6 years will be given additional nutritional supplement along with the food provided by the state government under ICDS programme.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/vedanta-to-support-600-anganwadi-centres-in-rayagada/360831/
No more excuses to eliminate child labour
12 Jun 2009, 0720 hrs IST, Ananthapriya Subramanian and M Aftab
The dust has settled on the 15th round of general elections. The new Parliament has a fresh crop of parliamentarians, symbolic of the country's
immense promise. Yet nearly 13 million of its children under 14 years of age are engaged as child labour.
Many of these children are forced to risk their lives and mortgage their future in trying to become adults productive to society. The atrocities associated with child labour have been discussed threadbare but the issue that is dogging us now is whether it is too simplistic to point a finger at poverty as the reason for child labour.
Families with child labourers are typically from the most marginalised communities in society. They are deprived of minimum wages and unaware of any alternate source of income. Lack of education and social discrimination also mean that they fail to stake claim to the benefits of various social security schemes available to them.
The abysmal quality of state-provided education means that even when children do enroll, they cannot count on their teachers showing up. Families prefer to send their children to work.
There are two key positive spinoffs of eliminating child labour: one, the increased productive capacity that a future generation of workers will enjoy due to their increased education; and two, the economic gains that are likely from improved health due to the elimination of hazardous forms of child labour.
Eliminating child labour should be seen as a generational investment, a sustained commitment to our future generation in order to reap the benefits when they reach adulthood. Initially, the economic burden may outweigh the returns, but as has been the experience of some developed countries, the economic dividends from improved health and education can only be positive.
India is a youthful nation with 440 million people aged 18 and below. Despite two-thirds of the country's workforce being in the productive age-group, this demographic dividend has not been fully utilised. This is because a majority of the workers are either unskilled or under-skilled. Much of their skills are acquired at work. A large proportion of the workforce at the lowermost rung has not had adequate schooling. Almost 44 per cent of the labour force in 1999-2000 was illiterate and 33 per cent had schooling up to the secondary education level. Even at the school level, vocational training has lost its focus.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/No-more-excuses-to-eliminate-child-labour/articleshow/4646312.cms
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