Goemkarponn Desk
PANAJI: The Supreme Court has dismissed writ petitions filed by the Goa Foundation and 22 mine owners, allowing the Goa government to sell iron ore that has been abandoned at various sites and not previously inventoried.
The bench, which included Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan, ordered that the private miners not keep any portion of the earnings from the aforementioned e-auctions; instead, they be deposited in the State Treasury.
The Goa government’s declaration that the miners would not split the money they made was likewise entered into the record by the court and was regarded as a commitment given to it.
Additionally, the Goa government submitted an application to use e-auction to sell 1.94 million tons of iron ores that were scattered around the State.
On July 25, the Supreme Court upheld the authority of States to impose taxes on mineral rights and land bearing minerals. The Court is expected to rule on this issue on August 14th, either prospectively or retrospectively.
On July 25, the bench ruled by a vote of 8 to 1 that the States had the authority to impose taxes on mineral rights through legislation.
In the meanwhile, three more mineral blocks totaling 526 hectares will be put up for e-auction by the Goa government in Phase III at Honda, Curpem, Sulcorna, and Codli.
The deadlines for purchasing tender documents and submitting bids are September 24 and October 4, respectively, on the e-auction platform provider’s website, following payment of a tender fee. In the first two stages of the electronic auction, the government had already put nine mineral blocks up for auction.
