ReporterShiv: 2011

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Karnataka State pays for forest in mining zone, but gets a tree

September-1, Bellary: While the Supreme Court constituted Central Empowered Committee (CEC) has raised serious concerns about the impact of mining on the environment in Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur, it now appears that the state and Union governments have done little to use funds collected from mining companies for afforestation in these districts.

Schemes drawn up by the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) took off in Karnataka as late as 2009-10 although mining has caused serious damage to the environment of these districts over the last decade. A mere Rs 3.11 crore has been spent on greening Bellary district, Rs 2.99 crore on Chitradurga and Rs 78 lakh on Tumkur district over the last two years, according to information provided by the office of the Chief Conservator of Forests, CAMPA, under RTI. There is obviously no shortage of funds as the mining companies have paid Rs 634.43 crore as Net Present Value (NPV), Rs 67.48 crore as compensatory afforestation fees and Rs 3 crore as safety zone fee upto March 2011.

The CAMPA fund was created in 2004 to make sure that industrial units which used forest land deposited its net value with the authority for afforestation and forest management programmes. Although Karnataka has contributed over Rs 705 crore of the Rs 11,000 crore collected across the country till the end of 2010, it received only Rs 58 crore from the Centre as the first installment in August last year, according to official sources.

Forest officers admit that the biggest drawback of CAMPA is that the money collected as afforestation fee cannot be used in the same region. “The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, which controls CAMPA distributes the funds across the states and so Bellary district is not getting its due share although it contributes hugely to the fund,” said an officer. The Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI), southern zone pointed out in a memorandum to the Environment Impact Assessment study team of the Supreme Court, that its members who hold 33 mining leases in Bellary, had contributed nearly Rs 500 crore under NPV and compensatory afforestation charges to CAMPA. “The state government has collected nearly `300 crores by way of forest development tax alone. We are not aware how this amount has been utilised,” the federation said.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Reddy bros foresee dissolution of Assembly | Deccan Chronicle | 2011-01-15

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Janardhan Reddy gets ‘CBI’ gift on birthday | Deccan Chronicle | 2011-01-12

Monday, January 10, 2011

SC panel decision big blow for Reddys | Deccan Chronicle | 2011-01-08

Reddys may have to pay Rs 4,400 cr fine for ‘illegal mining’ | Deccan Chronicle | 2011-01-10

Cracks appear in Reddy fortress | Deccan Chronicle | 2011-01-09

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Cracks appear in Reddy fortress

Bellary-Jan 8/2011

Cracks appeared in the Reddy camp with revenue minister G.
Karunakar Reddy distancing himself from the opera from the operations of Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) at a time when Opposition leaders stepped up their demand for ouster of the mine owners-cum-ministers in the wake of a report submitted by Supreme Courtappointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC).
Many senior Congress leaders maintained that yet another illegal mining scam involving the Reddy brothers would come in handy for the UPA government to blunt the attack by BJP leaders on the issue of corruption and scam in alloca tion of 2G spectrum.

Fissures seem to have appeared in the powerful political family of the Reddy brothers of Bellary when the Opposition is clamouring for their resignation from the state Cabinet.
The Reddy brothers are facing the heat after the Supreme Court constituted Central Empowered Committee (CEC) recommended cancellation of four mining fields operated by their family firm, the Obulapuram Mining Company.

Sources said that some members of the family circle were unhappy at the ‘aggression’ of the younger brother-cum-master strategist of the Reddy troika— G. Janardhan Reddy.

Big brother and state revenue minister G. Karunakar Reddy’s public statement on Saturday that he had no business links with the OMC has given room for suspicion that “all is not well” in the family.

The Reddy brothers’ lieutenant turned health minister B. Sriramulu, who is often called ‘fourth Reddy,’ too appears to have distanced himself from the OMC affairs.

Mr Sriramulu stayed away from a press conference called by Mr G. Janardhan Reddy on Friday at his home-office ‘Kuteeram,’ raising eyebrows.

On other hand, analysts also suspect that it is a political gameplan of Reddy camp to retain both Mr Karunakar Reddy and Mr Sriramulu in the Cabinet in case the party is forced to heed the Opposition call.

“If the SC approves the CEC report a situation may arise when the Chief Minister may ask for their resig

nation,” said a source. “That is why they have started distancing themselves from the OMC affairs.” Mr Karunakar Reddy distanced himself from the charges made against his family firm and said he had no relation with OMC and or its affairs. “I made it clear in writing in affidavits filed with the Election Commission of India,” he said. “The Opposition party’s demand for my resignation is foolish and politically immature.” However, certain documents submitted by the OMC to Indian Bureau of Mines in 2004 say that Mr Karunakar Reddy was a member of the board of directors.
The defeat in the recent local bodies’ polls has worried Mr Karunakar Reddy, Mr Somashekhar Reddy and Mr Sriramulu that their political clout might be diminishing.

Meanwhile, Mr Karunakar Reddy also defended the `clean business’ of OMC before the media.