Industries Committee seeks files from govt for mining permit
लगानी न्यूज
Kathmandu. The Committee on Industry, Commerce and Labour and Consumer Welfare has directed the Department of Mines and Geology to submit to the committee the data along with the actual number of files, the period of delay in the mining permission process, the period of delay and the reasons for not moving forward.
After holding discussions in principle on the Mines and Minerals Bill, 2083 in today’s meeting of the committee, Committee Chair Ansari directed the committee to provide clear details about the status of the files that have not been able to go for excavation after exploration, have not been able to produce it even after obtaining permission for exploration and excavation.TAG_OPEN_div_22
He demanded information about the status of 450 and 166 of the excavation process for obtaining a license for exploration and also asked to be present in the committee with a solution to the problem. He expressed concern about the number of officers working in the concerned divisions and branches of the department, the files in the custody of each officer and the data of the files forwarded.
TAG_OPEN_div_18Ansari said that the state should provide a conducive environment to the investors and unnecessary delay in the approval process would discourage investment. “Should the department identify the paper or the person? It is not about identifying the person, it is not about who the investor is, it should not be done to discourage the investors,” he said. He stressed that the bill should be forwarded in a result-oriented manner by addressing the existing problems and discussions should be held with the objective of bringing the best act soon.
Minister for TAG_OPEN_div_16 Industry, Commerce and Supplies Deepak Kumar Sah said that there was a need to discuss the issue of making the approval and approval process an online system and setting a deadline for the concerned bodies and making arrangements for automatic approval if the approval is not given within the stipulated time. He said that the delay in the approval process would cause a huge financial loss to the project and the discussion on it should be brought to the conclusion.
Director General of the Department of Mines and Geology, Dinesh Kumar Napit, in response to the queries of the committee members, clarified that stones, rivers and river-based ballast do not come under the Mines Act and the department does not have jurisdiction over them. He said that a separate act and institutional structure is necessary for the management of stones and pebbles. Referring to the reduction in manpower of the department, Director General Napit said that the cooperation of the local level is necessary in the monitoring and management of the mining area.TAG_OPEN_div_14
He said that the bill includes a provision that the right to excavate will be of the union, the right of exploration will be of the province and the conservation rights will be of the local level. The bill has a provision that the mineral is the property of the government and the excavation in the area of the mining license should be done and royalty should be paid at the prescribed rate according to the result.TAG_OPEN_div_12
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