Already under close scrutiny by the Karnataka Lokayukta and Supreme Court constituted Central Empowered Committee, the performance of the department of mines and geology in the state is now being thoroughly scanned by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).
CAG, which last month blew the lid on illegal mining in Himachal Pradesh and Odisha, has begun a similar performance audit of the mines and geology department in the state, particularly in relation to the mining scam that Karnataka is still coming to grips with. “The CAG team has verified the current procedures for issuing fresh mining licenses, notices to defaulting miners, collecting of royalty and penalty, remittance of funds, and so on. On completion, it is likely to suggest guidelines and measures to improve the system,” says Dr B N Shankar, deputy director of mines and geology, Hospet circle.
A special CAG team has also embarked on a field study to review the impact of mining on the environment and people's lives in the ore and granite mining districts of Bellary, Chitradurga, Tumkur and Ramanagara among others, reveals a senior officer of the Auditor General's office, Bengaluru who is heading a team studying the socio-economic impact of mining in the Sandur-Hospet region..
The CAG team has already spoken to NGO, Samaj Parivartan Samuday (SPS), which brought illegal mining in the state to the attention of the Supreme Court. “We conveyed to CAG officials that mining is a destructive activity and requires to be monitored," says SPS project officer, Iqbal Khan Pulli.