Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has allayed the fears of people about the disastrous effects of rat-hole mining by claiming that the rules governing the District Mineral Foundation would be put in place to address environmental concerns. The District Mineral Foundations (DMFs) are district-level bodies established under the new central mining laws to benefit local people affected by mining operations, by the end of 2018.
DMFs have been established under Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2015, also known as MMDRA Act, 2015. In Meghalaya the District Mineral Foundation Rules were notified in 2017. But at a meeting of all Secretaries of State Mining Departments held in November 2018, the Joint Secretary, Mining Department, Govt of Meghalaya, PL Lawai informed the Ministry that not a single rupee has been collected for the DMF as of October 1, 2018. The DMF funds are meant to address high priority sectors like drinking water supply, health care, sanitation, education, skill development, women and child care, welfare of the aged and disabled people, skill development and environment conservation. They are to get at least 60 per cent share of the DMF funds, as per the rules. For creating a “supportive and conducive” living environment, the mining rules state that the remaining DMF funds will be spent on making roads, bridges, railways, waterways, irrigation facilities and alternative energy sources. Most districts affected by mining operations are extremely poor and without basic amenities such as clean water, schools and hospitals. The DMF is necessitated because most districts affected by mining operations are extremely poor and without basic amenities such as clean water, schools and hospitals. This is exactly what defines the mining areas in Meghalaya.
The Central Mining Act clearly states that a mining licence or composite licence (prospecting licence-cum-mining licence) can be granted by state governments only through the auction route. Such a licence-owner company has to pay the DMF — established in the districts where it is mining — an amount equivalent to 10 per cent of the royalty. However, under the old mining law, licences were granted on a discretionary basis by the state governments. The companies with such licences have to pay an amount equivalent to 30 per cent of the royalty towards DMFs
It is precisely because of the reluctance to pay the required royalty to the DMF that the mine owners of Meghalaya want to skirt the Central Mining Act and to claim immunity under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. If the rules for operationalising the DMF are already there then what is the CM talking about?
