States gear up to auction 72 mineral blocks

Seventy-two more mineral blocks are set to go under the hammer before the end of this financial year.

Mineral-rich states such as Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana and Tamil Nadu would put these blocks to auction. A total of 33 limestone blocks, 12 iron ore, 11 bauxite, five copper, three each of graphite and manganese, two each of gold and emerald and one each of limestone and dolomite blocks are to be auctioned in the JanuaryMarch period. The state governments are expected to issue notices inviting tenders for the mineral blocks before the end of January.

According to the Union mines ministry data, 88 major mineral blocks had been notified by nine states for auction. Thirty-three blocks have already been successfully auctioned as of January 1, 2018. The mineral resources are valued at ~1.69 trillion, while the revenue to state governments over the lease period stands at ~1.28 trillion.

Of the projected revenue, cumulative royalty, District Mineral Fund and National Mineral Exploration Trust contributions amount to ~295 billion, ~26.39 billion and ~5.3 billion, respectively. Additional revenue from auction to states is pegged at more than ~990 billion.

To facilitate and expedite various clearances and approvals after the eauction, an inter-ministerial group, the PostAuction Mining and Approvals Facilitator, has been constituted. An online portal and mobile app, Transparency, Auction Monitoring & Resource Augmentation has been launched to monitor various clearances and approvals.

The central government has also amended the Mineral Auction Rules to make the process less cumbersome and enable states to auction more blocks swiftly.

Under the old rules, auctions were annulled if there were less than three bidders and three attempts were allowed. Now, even though three attempts still remain, states have the flexibility to allocate the block in the second attempt even if there are less than three bidders.

After the amended rules, miners can sell up to 25 per cent of their output not used for captive purposes. Earlier, it was compulsory for miners to use 100 per cent of their production.

The Centre has also amended the Mineral Auction Rules to make the process less cumbersome