Scrap Reddys' mining leases: SC panel

The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee has recommended cancellation of mining lease to Karnataka's powerful Reddy brothers' firms in Andhra Pradesh, saying their Obulapuram Mining Company had openly flouted various environmental laws in mining operations.

The committee also slammed Andhra Pradesh government officials saying the violations could not have taken place without their connivance.

The high-powered panel, which submitted its report on Friday to the apex court, recommended cancellation of the lease to four different mines spread over 140 acres on grounds of, among others, large scale illegal mining in Bellary Reserve Forest area.

The Reddy brothers include G Janardhan Reddy and G Karunakar Reddy who are ministers of Karnataka. Among other reasons cited by the committee for cancellation of mining lease are illegal extension of the lease by authorties, illegal mining beyond approved area and upto depth three times more than the permissible limit besides illegal construction within the reserved forest area within which they have the mining lease.

The committee also recommended suspension of all transportation activities from the four mines of the Reddy brothers till formal determination of the inter-state boundary between Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in Bellary reserve forest area and setting up of permanent boundary pillars.

In its 70-page report, the committee also said the lease deed of some of the mines were "illegally

extended" by state government officials while in the case of others they were extended years after they actually expired.

Mentioning about illegal construction, the panel said it has further found that in one mine of 68.5 hectare, "five roads has been illegally constructed in the reserved forest area and outside the approved lease" in violation of the provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Act and the condition on which the lease was given.

The committee also found that a mining lease of 39.5 hectare, executed by the Department of Mines of Andhra Pradesh government in favour of OMC ", differed materially from forest area for which the approval under the Forest (Conservation) Act has been obtained" originally.

It further found that in another 6.5 hectare mine of the Reddy brother's another group firm Ananthapur Mining Corporation, the lease was renewed by state officials 17 years after it expired while "11 lakh metric ton iron ore was transported out of it without obtaining permit from the forest department" for it. It also said the mineral extracted from this mine was transported under the guise of mineral extracted from other mines, which were in far excess of that area.

The CEC said these violations could not have happened without the help of Andhra Pradesh government officials. "Before concluding the report, the panel would like to refer the sorry state of affairs observed....and which could not have taken place without the active connivance of the concerned officers of the state government," it said.