The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Landowners branded illegal miners: CPI(M)

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Saturday, Aug 16, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Landowners branded illegal miners: CPI(M)

M. Raghuram

BANGALORE: Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) leader G.N. Nagaraj has criticised the BJP Government in the State for allegedly giving tacit support to the Reddy brothers of Bellary to strengthen their hold on the mining industry.

Mr. Nagaraj told The Hindu on Friday that the mining companies leased a small block of mining areas but took up mining in larger areas which was actually illegal. But the small holders who were mining in their patta lands were being branded as illegal miners as the Government denied them licences despite them being in possession of the patta of the land. Indirectly, the Government was forcing the owners of the small holdings to give up their mining resources to the illegal miners, Mr. Nagaraj alleged.

He said the mining lobbies were eager to stop the small miners from mining and the convenient way was to brand them illegal.

Growing clout

Mr. Nagaraj said because of the growing influence of the mining lobby there was total lawlessness in three different fields namely the land revenue and commercial tax evasion, destruction of forest lands and transportation and infrastructure.

He said the mining lobbies wreaked havoc on the transportation by plying overloaded trucks to long distances that had eroded the roads of the State causing damage to public and private vehicles.

He said the CPI(M) would launch a drive for nationalisation of mining industry.

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