States empowered to conduct searches on miners, centre tells HC
21 Aug 2010
The union government on Friday told the Karnataka high court that states are empowered to check illegal mining and conduct searches on illegal stockyards.
This was stated in an affidavit filed in response to a petition by 22 mines owners of Karnataka challenging the recent ban on iron ore exports imposed by the state government. The court adjourned hearing till 27 August.
The centre submitted that full powers had been delegated to the states to frame their own rules to curb illegal mining under section 23 (c) of the MMRDC Act.
States also have the authority to conduct searches on illegal mining storage places, the affidavit said, rejecting the petitioners' contention that the state government had no powers to ban iron ore exports.
The reasons for empowering the state governments for prevention of illegal mining could be due to the fact that the nature and magnitude of problem of illegal mining vary from state to state and moreover, the minerals wealth vests with the state governments, the affidavit said.
V S Lad and Co and 21 others have challenged the BJP government's decision of banning iron ore export.