Bellary Catholic Diocese fights Mining Mafia

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Feb 22, 2010, Bellary: A row has broken out between the church and the miners in Bellary with the Catholic Diocese claim- ing that iron ore is being illegally excavated from its property in Ramghad vil- lage, Sandur taluk.
On Monday, several nuns, priests and heads of the community took out a protest rally in the city ask- ing the government to pro- tect church property.

While Ranka International Pvt Ltd claims to have a license from the mines and geology department to mine on the church property, Msgr. Chowrappa Yerabo- bi, Vicar General of the Bel- lary Diocese says the own- ership of the 20 acres of iron ore rich land in Ramghad village can be traced in the revenue records to the Catholic Diocese of Bellary.

"The representatives of the company were extremely abusive and insulting when we questioned them," he said.
Further, he made it clear that politically strong people at the helm of affairs are hand in glove with the Company to encroach upon the Church property and carry out illegal mining
Bishop Henry D'Souza of the Catholic Diocese of Bel- lary wrote to Governor H.R.
Bhardwaj on February 2 about the mining on church property and the governor has since reportedly directed the principal secretary, com- merce and industries to act in the matter. However, so far no action has been taken.

When contacted, deputy commissioner B. Shivappa said he had received a call from the secretary to the CM about the mining on church land and promised to look into the matter.

Meanwhile, the mines and geology department says while no license has been given to the company to mine in the area, it is enti- tled to mine 4,500 metric tonnes from the grounds in question after winning the rights in an open auction held in 2006.

Pune blast: 4 Kashmiris detained in Hampi

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Bellary, Feb 17, 2010:Four Kashmiri men were taken into cus- tody in Hampi on Wedn- esday in connection with Saturday's terror attack on German Bakery in Pune.
A police team from Pune, following specific clues in emails sent from IP addresses in Hampi, detained the four suspects who sources said sold arte- facts in Virapura Gadde Island in the Tungabhadra river. Investigating officials are looking for three other suspects in the heritage town that draws thousands of foreign tourists every year. In Virapura Gadde, where a franchise of German Bakery is located and from where the emails were sent, seven Internet cafés were shut down since Tuesday evening.

Fearing for their safety, many foreign tourists stay- ing in resorts on the island, a kilometre from Hampi by coracle, started moving to hotels in Hampi and Hospet after news spread of the suspects being taken into custody. Investigators believe that part of the Pune attack conspiracy could have been hatched in Hampi, sources said.

The Pune police team arrived in Hampi after car- rying out investigations in Bhatkal in Uttara Kannada district, the hometown of terror outfit Indian Mujahideen co-founder Riyaz Bhatkal.

The Kashmiri community in Hampi has been under the scanner before, with the Bengaluru police arresting a suspected Kashmiri ter- rorist, Imran Jalal, in Hampi in January 2007.
Jalal established the now- defunct Kashmiri-Raja- sthani Handicrafts Shop Owners' Association that comprised over 35 Kashmiris.

Lokayukta `inaction' irks Janardhan Reddy

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Bellary, Feb 17, 2010: Welcoming the Supreme Court ruling upholding the right of a court to order a CBI investi- gation into any issue with- out the consent of the state government concerned, tourism minister G. Janard- han Reddy said on Wednes- day he was confident for- mer chief minister H.D.
Kumaraswamy would no longer be able to evade pun- ishment for "accepting bribes from mining barons in Karnataka."
Expressing displeasure that the Lokayukta commit- tee which looked into illegal mining had made no men- tion of the charges against Mr Kumaraswamy, he said the former chief minister would not be able to escape the legal dragnet for much longer. The Supreme Court ver- dict, which came with a rider that courts should use their powers to order a CBI investigation cautiously and sparingly, was based on nine petitions seeking a CBI probe under Articles 226 and 32 of the Constitution into various cases. The peti- tioners had contended that the CBI could conduct investigation in any state without prior consent of the government concerned.

Mr Reddy's petition seek- ing a CBI probe against Mr Kumaraswamy for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 150 crore from mining barons was one of the petitions con- sidered by the apex court.
According to the minister, his petition against the Jana- ta Dal(S) leader will come up for hearing before a three-member panel of the Supreme Court in two weeks.

Mr Reddy, who was an MLC in 2006, had charged Mr Kumaraswamy, then heading a BJP-JD(S) coali- tion government in the state, with taking a Rs 150 crore bribe from the Bellary min- ing barons and demanded a proble by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the matter.

Instead the state govern- ment constituted the Justice U.L. Bhat Commission to probe the charges levelled by him. But the Bhat Com- mission later went on to seek the assistance of the CBI in its investigation.

In March 2007 the govern- ment decided to wind up the Bhat commission for its `failure' to submit an inter- im report within the two month deadline set.

Mr Reddy now alleges that Justice Bhat did not receive the cooperation he needed from the govern- ment when he needed CBI assistance to conduct his inquiry.

"Much to my surprise, the Lokayukta committee con- stituted after the Bhat Com- mission was wound up, has not even once referred to the Rs 150 crore bribery charge in its report and very intelli- gently misled the public," the minister said, adding that the Supreme Court's ruling would have far reaching ramifications and bring to book influential politicians.

BUMPY LANDING - Helicopters encounter air pockets in Bellary

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Bellary, Feb 11/2010: What could be more telling than this about the high flying lifestyle of miners in iron ore rich Bellary? A temple in the town has put up `No Parking' signs on its grounds exclusively for helicopters and aircrafts.
The Sri Kumaraswamy temple in Nandihalli, some 12 km from the mining town of Sandur, has put up a sign saying "Landing of helicopters, aircraft not allowed."

Temple priest Suryanarayan Bhat says the board was erected in 2005 after mining baron turned Rajya Sabha MP Anil Lad landed in his newly bought Bell helicopter on the grounds of the temple to perform a pooja.

"The landing of the chopper with no sanction from the authorities angered temple trustee M.Y. Ghorpade, who ordered a ban on all aircraft arriving here," he said.

The signboard comes as no surprise to the people of Bellary, accustomed to seeing choppers landing in the backyards of palatial homes, farmhouses, resorts and even on rooftops of houses of rich mining barons.

A recent survey reported that around 17 private choppers and eight aircraft fly over Bellary everyday.
The district accounts for almost 10 per cent of the market for private flying machines.

Houses for Flood Victims: Reddys made tall promises fail to realise

Jan 21/2010

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Despite the Reddy brothers boast that mining barons of Bellary would build 50,000 houses for flood victims of north Karnataka, they have now come forward to build a mere 6580 houses in 18 villages of the district.
After months of dilly dallying eight iron ore mining companies of the district signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the state government on Wednesday to shift and rebuild 18 floodravaged villages in Bellary.Their contribution to the flood relief effort falls far short of what the Reddy brothers had promised a few months ago. They had announced that 50,000 houses would be built at a cost of Rs 1.15 lakh each under the Navagrama scheme for the flood-affected people of north Karnataka.
Signing the deal at district in-charge minister G Janardhan Reddy's homeoffice `Kuteeram' on Wednesday, only a handful of mine owners were present. And the 6,000-odd homes is a far cry from what is actually needed in the 16 villages in Siruguppa taluk and two villages in Hadagli taluk that must be relocated upstream from the river Tungabhadra.
Soon after the floods, on October 9, 2009, Mr.Reddy had said no government funds would be sought for housing schemes in district, while using his pro-active promise to rebuild to gain the upper hand over Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa during their failed putsch in November 2009.
The building of houses for flood victims had even become a prestige issue with the mining lords turned ministers during their fracas with the Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa. The ministers tried to steal a march over the government by laying the foundation stone for the Navagrama programme in Bellary, Gadag, Koppal and Raichur districts, before the the government could launch its rehabilitation project `Asare'.
But all this seems to have been for nothing. Sources said the Bellary ministers could not mobilize the funds required as many of the miners did not contribute as expected.
Sixteen villages of Siruguppa taluk and two in Hadagli taluk were severely affected by the floods in September last year. The revenue department had recommended the shifting of these floodprone villages from the bank of the river Tungabhadra to safer ground as a precaution.
Deputy commissioner B Shivappa told the Deccan Chronicle that the layout plan prepared by the government would be used as a model by the mining companies when rebuilding these villages. While the mining companies will contribute the Rs 1.15 lakh required to build each house, the road, underground drainage, drinking water and other civic amenities will be provided by the government.
When contacted, health minister B. Sriramulu maintained Mr Janardhan Reddy had delivered everything he had promised for the flood victims. "The MoU has been signed with mine owners for building houses not only in Bellary, but other flood affected districts of north Karnataka," he contended.

Rival mine barons in ‘get Reddy Brothers’ mission

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Dec. 16/2009

Talk about a rebellion and the names that automatically spring to mind are the infamous Reddys from Bellary whose November putsch failed to unseat Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa.
But this time, tourism minister G. Janardhan Reddy and revenue minister G. Karunakar Reddy who have held back to back midnight parleys with the Chief Minister to defuse the current rebellion, are not playing spoiler but mediator.
In fact, the challenge to BSY’s government comes from a determinedly apolitical mining family who are said to be tacitly backing the 18-20 member ‘third bloc’ and have reportedly struck a deal with the Janata Dal (Secular)-Congress leadership to end the Reddy reign over the Bellary empire.
Industry sources say a reputed mine owner whose family has been in mining for the last five decades has been leading the ‘Reddy rival mine owners syndicate’ to execute a game plan to form a JD(S)-Congress government in a bid to keep the Reddy brothers from becoming more powerful than they already are.
The rivalry between the Reddys and the other mining giants has been a longstanding one, that has seen these mining families face police harassment and receive threatening calls.
One of the main reasons that forced this non-political group of mine owners to seek an alternative government in state, sources say, is the difficulty in obtaining mineral dispatch permits (MDPS) from the local officials who only take orders from the Reddy brothers. Apart from this, they are also facing serious encroachment into their mining territory and looting of their mineral wealth.
“Non-issuance of MDPS, leaving mines idle at the time of making business profits, day and night encroachments on their mines, police harassment and delay in getting justice from the court procedures have made Reddy rivals make a one-time investment for an alternative government in the state,” remarked sources.
The mine owners have taken this route before. “The same syndicate of Reddy rivals approached the Chief Minister and a senior national leader of party from New Delhi when the Reddys rebelled last month. Then, they had assured BSY they would bring in the JD(S) in return for the expulsion of the Reddy brothers from the party. They failed due to Sushma Swaraj’s firm support to the Reddy brothers,” the sources said.
But, this time, they seized the opportunity that opened up when the so-called ‘third bloc’ found they had not benefited from aligning with the Reddys. “The statements being issued by JD(S) chief H.D. Deve Gowda party state unit president H.D. Kumaraswamy and Congress leaders S. Siddaramaiah and R.V. Deshpande in recent weeks favouring a Congress-JD(S) coalition is an indication that these mine owners are in touch with both the Congress and JD(S) top leadership,” the source said.

MINED IT! - Tipu weapons from Bellary mine

Tipu Sultan, the Tiger of Mysore

By Shivakumar G Malagi

Bellary, Nov 27 2009

When the controversy hogged the Reddy Brothers mining empire after Central Empowered Committee of the Supreme Court held the Reddys’ owned Obulapuram Mining Company guilty of illegal mining and called for a halt to mining in six mines of Bellary Reserve Forest of Andhra Pradesh for the same reason, great warrior King Tippu Sultan might be turning in his grave!.
Before the “Tom, Dick and Reddys” tryst with disputed mineral rich zone surrounding Suggalamma hillock in BRF of Rayadurg taluk on Andhra Pradesh side, nearly 220 years ago, Mysore Tiger Tippu Sultan excavated mineral from the same area to manufacture artillery including war rockets.
According to volume XXV of the Geology of the Bellary District, Madras Presidency published in 1895, Tippu Sultan had a mine on the Sugalamma Koda (hillock). Author of this volume, Robert Bruce Foote, F.G.S., F.M.U; Superintendent of Geological Survey of India wrote “metal was mined for by Tippu Sultan when master of the Bellary region”. He wrote that Copper Mountain, a European geologist in Tippu’s army had vouched existence of mineral, particularly discovered copper and other chemical compositions of mineral in Sugalamma Konda that was used in making combustion powder.He documented that during his traverse, he found haematite quartzite rock, but there were no signs of copper in any form of variety. However, in his third attempt, he found an old abandoned mine in Sugalamma Konda as called by Telugu neighbourhood or Copper Mountain possessed of no collective native name, but which may well be called after its principal summit the Copper Mountain of the European and Suggammadevi Betta or Sogadevibetta of the Canarese (Kannada speaking people) natives.
In fact, Robert Bruce Foote took up research on Tippu's mine after the Captain T J Newbold, F.R.S of the Madras Army who made a number of traverses through various parts of the district after the fall of Tippu in IV Anglo-Mysore War. He had made descriptions on Tippu’s mines and mineral melting furnaces’ in Suggalamma hillock in the journal of Asiatic Societies of London and Bengal in 1842.
According to Kannada Kaifiyats (, with the mineral mined out from Suggalamma Konda, Tippu’s European engineers produced manufactured war weapons in melting furnaces located in the area including that Tippu-fame war rockets with an important change: the use of metal cylinders to contain the combustion powder. He used to store artillery in Bellary fort built on the Bellary rock hill.