S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 1 of 101
REPORTABLE
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
SPECIAL LEAVE TO APPEAL (CIVIL) NO. 32138 OF 2015
The Goa Foundation …Petitioner
Versus
M/s Sesa Sterlite Ltd. & Ors. …Respondents
WITH
SLP (C) NOS. 32699-32727 OF 2015, WRIT
PETITION (C) NO. 711 OF 2015 AND WRIT
PETITION (C) NO. 720 OF 2015
J U D G M E N T
Madan B. Lokur, J
1. Rapacious and rampant exploitation of our natural resources is the
hallmark of our iron ore mining sector - coupled with a total lack of concern
for the environment and the health and well-being of the denizens in the
vicinity of the mines. The sole motive of mining lease holders seems to be
to make profits (no matter how) and the attitude seems to be that if the rule
of law is required to be put on the backburner, so be it. Unfortunately, the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 2 of 101
State is unable to firmly stop violations of the law and other illegalities,
perhaps with a view to maximize revenue, but without appreciating the long
term impact of this indifference. Another excuse generally put forth by the
State is that of development, conveniently forgetting that development must
be sustainable and equitable development and not otherwise.
2. Effective implementation and in some instances circumvention of the
mining and environment related laws is a tragedy in itself. Laxity and sheer
apathy to the rule of law gives mining lease holders a field day, being the
primary beneficiaries, with the State being left with some crumbs in the form
of royalty. For the State to generate adequate revenue through the mining
sector and yet have sustainable and equitable development, the
implementation machinery needs a tremendous amount of strengthening
while the law enforcement machinery needs strict vigilance. Unless the two
marry, we will continue to be mute witnesses to the plunder of our natural
resources and left wondering how to retrieve an irretrievable situation.
3. The Government of India appears to have received information of
large-scale illegal mining of iron ore and manganese ore in different States
in contravention of the provisions of the Mines and Minerals (Development
and Regulation) Act, 1957 (the MMDR Act), the Forest (Conservation) Act,
1980, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and other rules and guidelines
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 3 of 101
issued on the subject from time to time.
4. Acting on this information, the Government of India appointed Justice
M.B. Shah a former judge of this Court as a commission of inquiry under
Section 3 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 by a notification dated
22nd November, 2010. The terms of reference of the Commission for the
State of Goa were as follows:
2. The terms of reference of the Commission shall be -
(i) to inquire into and determine the nature and extent of
mining and trade and transportation, done illegally or without
lawful authority, of iron ore and manganese ore, and the losses
therefrom; and to identify, as far as possible, the persons, firms,
companies and others that are engaged in such mining, trade and
transportation of iron ore and manganese ore, done illegally or
without lawful authority;
(ii) to inquire into and determine the extent to which the
management, regulatory and monitoring systems have failed to
deter, prevent, detect and punish offences relating to mining,
storage, transportation, trade and export of such ore, done
illegally or without lawful authority, and the persons responsible
for the same;
(iii) to inquire into the tampering of official records, including
records relating to land and boundaries, to facilitate illegal
mining and identify, as far as possible, the persons responsible
for such tampering; and
(iv) to inquire into the overall impact of such mining, trade,
transportation and export, done illegally or without lawful
authority, in terms of destruction of forest wealth, damage to the
environment, prejudice to the livelihood and other rights of tribal
people, forest dwellers and other persons in the mined areas, and
the financial losses caused to the Central and State Governments.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 4 of 101
3. The Commission shall also recommend remedial measures to
prevent such mining, trade, transportation and export done illegally
or without lawful authority.”
5. Justice Shah visited Goa and after calling for and receiving
information from the concerned authorities as well as the mining lease
holders, he submitted a report on 15th March, 2012 and another on 25th April,
2012 to the Ministry of Mines in the Government of India. The reports were
tabled in Parliament on 7th September, 2012 along with an Action Taken
Report and as a result, the Government of Goa passed an order dated 10th
September, 2012 suspending all mining operations in the State with effect
from 11th September, 2012. The Ministry of Environment and Forests
(MoEF) of the Government of India acted similarly and kept in abeyance the
environmental clearances granted to 139 mines (actually 137 mines – there
is some duplication) in the State of Goa by an order dated 14
th September,
2012.
6. Subsequent to the reports given by Justice Shah, a writ petition was
filed by Goa Foundation in this Court being WP (C) No. 435 of 2012. The
writ petition was a public interest litigation praying, inter alia, for directions
to the Union of India and the State of Goa to take steps to terminate the
mining leases where mining was carried out in violation of various statutes.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 5 of 101
7. Similarly, several mining lease holders preferred writ petitions in the
Bombay High Court for a declaration that the reports given by Justice Shah
are illegal and also for quashing the orders dated 10th September, 2012 and
14th September, 2012 whereby mining operations were suspended and
environmental clearances were kept in abeyance. The writ petitions filed in
the High Court were transferred to this Court for hearing along with WP (C)
No. 435 of 2012.
8. This Court heard all these matters and rendered its decision in Goa
Foundation v. Union of India on 21st April 2014.1 Among other
conclusions arrived at, it was held by the Court that all the iron ore and
manganese ore leases had expired on 22nd November, 2007. Consequently,
any mining operation carried out by the mining lease holders after that date
was illegal. It was also held that all the mining lease holders had enjoyed a
first deemed renewal of the mining lease and for a second renewal an
express order was required to be passed in view of and in terms of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act. For a second renewal of the mining lease, it was
held that the State Government must apply its mind and record reasons for
renewal being in the interest of mineral development and the necessity to
1
(2014) 6 SCC 590
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 6 of 101
renew the mining lease. Any decision taken by the State Government should
also be in conformity with the constitutional provisions. The decision taken
by the State of Goa to grant a mining lease in a particular manner or to a
particular party could be examined by way of judicial review. It was also
held that the orders dated 10th September, 2012 and 14th September, 2012 are
not liable to be quashed and that they would continue till decisions are taken
to grant fresh leases and fresh environmental clearances for mining projects.
Goa Mineral Policy 2013
9. During the pendency of the proceedings before the Court, the State of
Goa announced the draft Goa Mineral Policy on 21st August, 2012. After
suggestions etc. were received, the Mineral Policy was finalized and
gazetted on 28th September, 2013.
10. A few salient features of the Mineral Policy may be mentioned. It is
stated in the Preamble to the Mineral Policy: “The Goan economy is heavily
dependent on the iron ore industry insofar as the major share of the regional
income from the mineral industry and its allied activities like transport and
trade is concerned.”
“However, during the period from 2006-07 to 2011-12, due to huge
spurt in demand of low grade ore in international market followed by
illegalities and irregularities in the previous regulatory regime, the
State has witnessed the peak of chaotic and unregulated mining
without any concern for fragile ecology and environment of the State
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 7 of 101
or for the general well being of an average Goan. It has resulted in
massive export of unaccounted ore from unidentified sources like
dumps and tailings. The reckless exploitation without any concern
for sustainability that the State has witnessed in last five years has
serious implications. Minerals are a finite and non-renewable natural
resource and must be exploited wisely in the larger interest of the
State.
It is high time that the new Government that has received an
unprecedented mandate from the people of Goa should take note that
dependence on mining presents extreme externalities and the State
has to tread cautiously promoting a sustainable extraction
regime to facilitate systematic, scientific and planned utilization
of mineral resources and to streamline mineral based development
of the State, keeping in view, protection of environment, health and
safety of the people in and around the mining areas rather than race
to bottom.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
11. Notwithstanding this serious indictment of the pre-existing „policy‟
for mining natural resources in Goa, the Mineral Policy did not address itself
to the allocation or distribution of the natural resources in any of its 20
paragraphs and many sub-paragraphs. The topics dealt with in the Mineral
Policy include objectives and parameters, sustainable mining and mineral
conservation, mineral administration, regulation of mines and minerals,
pollution and its social impact, and policy highlights. Some of the other
topics dealt with in the Mineral Policy include capping, based on carrying
capacity of public roads and to protect inter-generational equity, mines
safety and rehabilitation of affected people, stakeholder participation
(including corporate social responsibility), welfare and social responsibilities
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 8 of 101
and establishment of the Goa Minerals Development Fund etc.
12. However, what is of some significance is that paragraphs 1.4.4 and
1.4.5 of the Mineral Policy state that Goan iron ore is low grade, that is
having low iron (or Fe) content and that its extraction provides no or
minimal domestic value addition. Almost all the iron ore extracted in Goa is
exported and we were informed that only one mining lease holder captively
consumes Goan extracted iron ore. Paragraphs 1.4.4 and 1.4.5 of the Mineral
Policy read as follows:
“1.4.4 No Domestic Value Addition: The nature of Goan iron ore is
such that value addition opportunities in the domestic market are
minimal. The Chinese and Japanese use Goan iron ore for blending
purposes to bring down the average cost of iron ore, whereas Indian
steel producers have a wide range of high grade fines to choose
from. Despite the closure of mining operations in the
neighbouring State of Karnataka, Goan iron ore is not used in
Indian Steel Industry due to its low Fe content.
1.4.5. Low Grade v/s High Grade: Goan iron ore has always been of
low grade Fe content in comparison with that of Odisha, Jharkhand
and Karnataka. The low grade of ore has been competitive in
global markets, because of the non reliance on railways and
close distances of mines to ports thereby reducing the overall
cost. The high silica presence in Goan ore also is a favourable factor
for preference for Goan ore over Australian and Brazilian low grade
ore.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
13. It appears from the above that the extraction of iron ore in Goa is
geared only towards export and not for domestic purposes because of the
low Fe content and high silica presence.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 9 of 101
Vishwanath Anand Expert Appraisal Committee
14. During the pendency of the writ petition in the Court, the MoEF
constituted an Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) on 21st March, 2013
with Shri Vishwanath Anand, former Secretary in the MoEF as the
Chairman to specifically look into issues related to illegal mining in the
State of Goa. The terms of reference of the EAC were as follows:
(a) To examine the information/documents submitted by each of
the 139 project proponents in response to aforesaid direction dated
14th September, 2012 under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 for
keeping environment clearance in abeyance and making case-bycase
recommendations to the MoEF;
2
(b) To evaluate status of compliance with respect to conditions
stipulated as part of environment clearance;
(c) xxx xxx xxx
(d) To examine the observations relating to MoEF in Justice Shah
Commission report on illegal mining of iron and manganese ore in
the State of Goa and make appropriate recommendations.
15. The EAC gave its report sometime in October 2013 with regard to 137
mining leases. Very briefly, the EAC found many of the mining lease
holders had: (i) No approval from the National Board of Wildlife; or (ii)
Indulged in excess mining; or (iii) Indulged in dump mining; or (iv)
Intersected groundwater level; or (v) No clearance from the Central Ground
2
Actually 137 project proponents – there is some duplication
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 10 of 101
Water Board to draw ground water; or (vi) No forest clearance. We may
also note that the EAC also recommended the revocation of environmental
clearance granted to several mining lease holders for a variety of reasons.
16. The Mineral Policy and the report of the EAC were perhaps placed
before the Court in the writ petition filed by Goa Foundation and the
transferred cases, but not dealt with, except for a brief mention of the
Mineral Policy.
17. All the cases before the Court were heard quite extensively in
September, October and November 2013. Judgment was reserved on 11th
November, 2013 and pronounced on 21st April, 2014. Some of the
conclusions arrived at by the Court relevant for our discussions have already
been mentioned above.
18. At this stage, it may be mentioned that on 11th November, 2013 read
with an order dated 18th November, 20133
this Court constituted an Expert
Committee “to conduct a macro EIA study on what should be the ceiling of
annual excavation of iron ore from the State of Goa considering its iron ore
resources and its carrying capacity keeping in mind the principles of
sustainable development and intergenerational equity and all other relevant
factors.” The members of the Expert Committee were:
3
Goa Foundation v. Union of India, (2014) 6 SCC 738 and Goa Foundation v. Union of India, WP (C) No. 435 of 2012
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 11 of 101
1. Dr. C.R. Babu (Ecologist)
2. Dr S.C. Dhiman (Geologist/Hydrogeologist)
3. Prof. B.K. Mishra (Mineralogist)
4. Prof. S. Parameswarappa (Forestry)
5. Shri Parimal Rai (nominee of the Ministry of Environment and
Forests, Government of India).
19. The Expert Committee submitted an Interim Report dated 14th March,
2014 to the Court after considering reports prepared by the Tata Energy
Research Institute (TERI), New Delhi (1997); TERI and International
Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada (2006); MoEF (2014);
research papers prepared by the Goa University and the National Institute of
Oceanography; Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines),
Dhanbad (2013); Pollution Control Board, Goa (Annual Report) and other
literature. It noted large-scale degradation of the environment in Goa due to
mining operations. A Final Report was also submitted by the Expert
Committee to the Court on or about 12th April, 2015 - it was obviously not
available to the Court.
Other proceedings in the High Court
20. Quite independent of the cases pending in this Court, writ petitions
were filed by several mining lease holders in the Bombay High Court
praying either for consideration of their application for a second renewal of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 12 of 101
the mining lease or for the grant of a mining lease on second renewal. The
High Court heard those writ petitions and delivered its judgment on 13th
August, 2014.4
In the course of its judgment, the High Court referred to the
Mineral Policy and observed:
“The State Government also framed Goa Mineral Policy, 2013,
which was duly gazetted on 28th September, 2013 and was placed on
record before the Supreme Court in Writ Petition (C) 435/2012. The
State Government, in terms of this policy, in principle, agreed to
renew 28 leases. These leaseholders were also asked to pay stamp
duty. In some cases, after payment of the stamp duty, decision under
Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act was taken to renew the leases and
that decision is also gazetted. Thus, the petitions are classified in
three categories mentioned hereinbelow:
(A)Where there is notification issued in the Official Gazette after
taking a decision for renewal;
(B) Where there is a decision for renewal and there is stamp duty
collected; and
(C) Where there are renewal applications made and are still pending.
All the petitioners initially sought directions to the State Government
to decide their applications for renewal filed in the year 2007.
However, the petitions which fell in the first two categories were
subsequently amended and directions were sought against the
Government to execute second renewal lease deeds.”
21. In its decision, the High Court held: (i) The decision of this Court [in
Goa Foundation] is not an impediment on the State of Goa in considering
the applications filed by the petitioners before the High Court for a second
renewal of the mining lease. On the contrary, the decision casts an obligation
4
Lithoferro v. State of Goa, MANU/MH/1292/2014 = 2014 SCC OnLIne Bom 997
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 13 of 101
on the Government of Goa to consider all the applications for renewal under
Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act; (ii) Consideration of the applications should
be in accordance with the Mineral Policy, the provisions of the MMDR Act
and the Rules made thereunder and in accordance with constitutional
provisions; (iii) The expression „fresh leases‟ occurring in paragraph 67 (82)
of the decision of this Court [in Goa Foundation] is an affirmation of the
law that the renewal of a lease is also a fresh grant. For arriving at this
conclusion, the High Court placed reliance on State of M.P. v. Krishnadas
Tikaram.
5
The High Court finally held:
“In the case in hand, admittedly, all the petitioners have made
applications for second renewal within the time limit i.e. before
expiry of the term of first renewal of the mining leases. The mining
plans for the second renewal, thereafter, came to be approved by the
IBM. The IBM also recorded its subjective satisfaction that the same
is in the interest of mineral development. Thus, there is enough
material on record to show that the Government agreed to grant the
second renewal of mining leases under Section 8(3) of the MMDR
Act and thereafter amended the Stamp Act and directed some of the
petitioners to pay the stamp duty and even accepted the same. Thus,
the Government gave promise that the mining leases would be
executed under Section 8(3) and pursuant to the promise, the
petitioners altered their position by depositing the huge stamp duty.
Therefore, it is now not open for the Government to resile from the
promise as it is estopped by the doctrine of promissory estoppel from
doing so. The petitioners legitimately expected that after payment of
the stamp duty, the Government would execute the second leases
under Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act. In our considered opinion, the
5
1995 Supp (1) SCC 587
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 14 of 101
principle of promissory estoppel is squarely applicable to the facts of
the present case. The Government is reluctant to execute the lease
deeds under Section 8(3) only on the ground that it is not open for it
to do so in the light of the Apex Court judgment in Writ Petition (C)
No. 435/2012. We have already held that the Supreme Court
judgment in Writ Petition (C) No. 435/2012 is not an impediment in
the Government‟s way in executing the leases in terms of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act.”
22. In view of the above conclusions, the High Court passed the following
orders:
“(I) The Respondent-State of Goa is directed to execute the lease
deeds under Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act in favour of the
petitioners/lease holders who/which have already paid the stamp
duty pursuant to the orders of the Government, in accordance with
the Goa Mineral Policy, 2013 placed before the Supreme Court in
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 435/2012 and subject to the conditions laid
down by the Apex Court in the said Writ Petition.
(II) So far as the petitioners/lease holders who/which have not paid
the stamp duty are concerned, the Respondent-State of Goa is
directed to decide their renewal applications under Section 8(3), as
expeditiously as possible, and preferably within a period of three
months from the date of receipt of copy of this order.”
23. Two petitions for special leave have been filed directed against the
judgment and order passed by the High Court on 13th August, 2014 being
SLP (C) No. 32138 of 2015 and SLP (C) Nos. 32699-32727 of 2015 and
these are also before us.
Goa Grant of Mining Leases Policy 2014
24. Keeping in mind the orders and directions passed by this Court and
the High Court, the State of Goa formulated the Goa Grant of Mining Leases
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 15 of 101
Policy 2014. We were informed by the learned Additional Solicitor General
that the Grant of Mining Leases Policy was approved by the Council of
Ministers of the Goa State Cabinet on 1st October, 2014. It was issued on 4th
November, 2014 and placed on the website of the Directorate of Mines and
Geology of the Government of Goa on the same day. However, it was
gazetted on 20th January, 2015 with two paragraphs deleted from the
document issued on 4th November, 2014. The two deleted paragraphs are
indicated below.
25. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy makes for some very important
and interesting reading and includes an impassioned plea for rejecting the
process of competitive bidding of mining leases for the time being. It also
contains the statement made by the Chief Minister on the floor of the Goa
State Legislative Assembly. While the Grant of Mining Leases Policy is a
large document, it is necessary to read relevant extracts from it since it
indicates the factors that went into taking the policy decision and also to
appreciate if there was any violation of Article 14 of the Constitution. The
relevant extracts read as under:
Background.–– In accordance with the Directions contained in the
judgment and order of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court dated 21st April,
2014 in Writ Petition (Civil) No.435 of 2012, the Hon‟ble Supreme
Court has declared that all the Mining Leases in the State of Goa
have expired on 22nd November, 2007.….
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 16 of 101
It has further been directed by the Hon‟ble Supreme Court that it is
for the State Government to decide as a matter of Policy, in what
manner Mining Leases are to be granted in the future…..
The Hon‟ble Supreme Court has in its Judgment and Order dated
21st April, 2014 clearly held that the action of allowing the mines to
be run on Deemed Extension Basis from the years 2007 to 2012 was
completely illegal and has further declared that the so-called deemed
mining leases in the State of Goa have expired in the year 2007…..
Few things emerge out of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court‟s Order. In
the first place, the mining leases have been held to have expired in
the year 2007. In the second place, the State Government has
been directed, in accordance with its policy to grant fresh leases
in the State.
With these, the options available with the State Government are as
follows:–
The State Government can directly auction the leases in order
to secure the best returns for the grant of leases by way of a
competitive bidding process,
(a) The State Government can also form a State Corporation and
undertake the mining activities through the State Mineral
Development Corporation.
(b) The State Government could also proceed to grant fresh leases,
in terms of the MMRD Act by the following the process of
preferential grant of leases to certain persons as specified in the
MMRD Act.
(c) Yet another option available to the State Government was to
decide the renewal applications which were pending since the
year 2006 and which had remained without any disposal.
Each of the aforesaid modes has its own merits and de-merits….
While the State Government was in the process of deliberating on all
these issues at various levels, the judgment and order of the Hon‟ble
High Court in Writ Petition filed by certain lease holders came to be
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 17 of 101
delivered on 13th August, 2014 whereby the Hon‟ble High Court has
directed the execution of the Lease Deeds under Section 8(3) of the
MMRD Act in favour of the lease holders who have already paid the
stamp duty pursuant to Orders of the State Government in
accordance with the Goa Mineral Policy, 2013, placed before the
Hon‟ble Supreme Court and subject to the conditions…..
This judgment and order of the Hon’ble High Court virtually
leaves no choice to the State Government, thereby to completely
abandon the process of competitive bedding [bidding] for
earning the best revenue to the State Government. While this
was the position taken by the State Government in the Goa
Mineral Policy, 2013, and the Hon‟ble High Court has interpreted
the Order of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court in Writ Petition (Civil)
No.435/2012, the State Government in view of Hon’ble High
Court order, has for the present ruled out the process of going
for competitive bidding. The State Government is considering
actively, within its Constitutional powers and functions, to come out
with regulatory and controlling measures and levy and collect
appropriate returns having regard to the fact that the soil comprising
the land belongs to the State…. The State Government has also
commenced the inquiry and investigation into the violations of
matters under Rule 37 and 38 of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960
as directed by the Hon‟ble Supreme Court….
As is seen from the aforesaid, the Judgment and order of the Hon‟ble
High Court is an intervening circumstance inasmuch as it directs the
execution of Lease Deeds in 28 cases and consideration of the
Application under Section 8(3) by the State Government in the other
cases….
In the considered Opinion of the State Government, it would be
futile to challenge the Judgment of the Hon‟ble High Court before
the Hon‟ble Apex Court as that would once again delay the
commencement of the Mining Operations. As a matter of fact, a
substantial portion of the State‟s Revenue comes from the Mining
Sector. The State has been virtually starved of funds for undertaking
many activities including Infra-structural Projects; and on account of
the stopping of the Mining Operation, the State had to walk a tightrope
as there has been no Revenue coming from one of the major
source of Revenue….
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 18 of 101
Having regard to the aforesaid, the State Government thought it
proper to act in accordance with the Directions of the Hon‟ble
Supreme Court by balancing the equities, needs; as also to sub-serve
the Public Interest and by having sustainable development by
protecting the Ecological and all other factors.
Policy Framework.–– The State Government has been considering
and deliberating the entire matter, and thought it proper having
regard to the facts that:
(a) The Mining Lease Holders had applied for the Second Renewal
well within time.
(b) The fact that the Applications of the Mining lease holders for the
Second Renewal were not disposed off by the then State
Government and for which the Lease Holders cannot be blamed.
(c) Having further regard to the fact that 27 mining Lease Holders
despite the closure of the mining operations, when called by the
State to do so within the period, have paid the Stamp Duty; as also,
other levies.
(d) Such payments helped the State Government to override the
financial crisis at that point of time.
(e) Having regard to the fact that a large number of labour staff
employed with these lease holders.
(f) That concerned Mining Lease Holders have invested heavily into
the development of Mines; as also, into the Machinery such as
Ripper Dozers, Cranes, wheel loader, Beneficiation plants etc.
(g) Other methods are not as suitable as this method for various
reasons listed [in] Hon‟ble Chief Minister statement to the House
listed above.
The State Government after having considered the matter from every
possible angle, has decided to exercise its Power under Section 8(3)
of the Mines and Mineral Regulations and Development Act, 1957,
and to consider each of the cases on their own merits and subject
to compliance with the Conditions which may be laid down by the
State Government including for strict Pollution Control measures,
and thereafter take a decision on the renewal in terms of Section 8(3)
of the MMRD Act, 1957, complying fully with the Procedure laid
down therein.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 19 of 101
Though the State Government has in principle decided to follow the
route of the renewal of Lease under Section 8(3) of the MMRD Act,
it shall be subject to the following:-
Unless and until the Inquiry initiated pursuant to the Judgment
and Order of the Honourable Supreme Court of India against those
Mine Lease Holders found to be violating either Rule 37 or Rule 38
of the Mineral Concession Rules 1960, or otherwise indicted in the
Report of the Justice Shah Commission/PAC report or found to be
engaged in, any kind of illegality of whatsoever nature such as
illegal Sale of Ore, Sale of Royalty Challan without Ore,
Encroachment of adjoining areas outside the lease over production in
excess of the limit specified in the Environmental Clearance; those
which have undertaken unscientific mining operations; those who
have violated or have not paid the Royalty amount; those who have
re-used old Royalty Challans for defrauding; and those involved in
Illegal Mining Activities shall not be considered for renewal of
the Mining Leases.
For this purpose, presently the inquiries are in progress at various
levels and foras including the investigation by the SIT Team, by the
Team of Chartered Accountants which have been set up by the State
Government and after the Inquiry is complete or during the course of
the inquiry where it is found that any violations have taken place,
such persons shall not be considered for Grant/Renewal of the
Leases…..
Those Mining Lease Holders who have paid Stamp Duty, in
which there are no violations found in terms of Mr. Justice Shah
Inquiry/Public Accounts Committee Report, shall be considered
for Renewal. [Deleted from the gazetted Policy].
The formation of the entire Policy is aimed that it is required to
balance various interests having regard to the Principle of
Sustainable Development; but by keeping in mind the commercial
interest of the present state of economy, the interest of the labour
class, the interest of the working class including other staff, the
interest of the market in the Mining Localities, the interest of the
Public Sector, the interest of the existing Mining Lease Holders and
the overall welfare needs of the State; and require all urgent
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 20 of 101
infrastructural development. By balancing all these interests the
present Policy has been formulated by the State Government.”
The above policy is in principle decision of the State
Government and will be vetted for exact legal requirements
from specific necessities as also from financial view points and
notified thereafter.”
6
[Deleted from the gazetted Policy]. [Emphasis
supplied by us].
26. Around this time, and pursuant to the Budget Speech given by the
Hon‟ble Minister of Finance of the Government of India on 10th July, 2014 it
appears that steps were being taken by the concerned Ministry in the
Government of India to amend the MMDR Act.7
In fact a draft Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2014 was prepared on or about
16th November, 2014 and uploaded on the website of the Ministry of Mines
on 17th November, 2014. This information was placed before us from the
response given by the Hon‟ble Minister of Mines to Unstarred Question No.
2485 to be answered in the Lok Sabha on 8th December, 2014. The question
was:
(a) whether the Government proposes to formulate a new policy on
grant of mining leases for various minerals by amending the Mines
and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957;
(b) if so, the details thereof along with the time by which the new
policy is likely to be implemented;
6
http://www.goadmg.gov.in/Uploads/288.pdf
7
122. “It is my Government’s intention to encourage investment in mining sector and promote sustainable mining
practices to adequately meet the requirements of industry without sacrificing environmental concerns. The
current impasse in mining sector, including, iron ore mining, will be resolved expeditiously. Changes, if necessary,
in the MMDR Act, 1957 would be introduced to facilitate this.” *Emphasis supplied by us+.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 21 of 101
And the answer was:
(a) & (b): Yes Madam. The Ministry has drafted the Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) (Amendment)
Bill, 2014, which has been uploaded on the website of the Ministry
on 17.11.2014, calling for comments/suggestions on the draft Bill.
The last date for receipt of the comments/suggestions is 10th
December 2014. Based on the comments/suggestions received the
draft Bill will be finalized and taken forward for introduction in the
Parliament.
The Bill is designed to put in place mechanisms for: (i) Improved
transparency in the allocation of mineral resources; (ii) Obtaining for
the government its fair share of the value of such resources; (iii)
Attracting private investment and the latest technology; and (iv)
Eliminating delay in administration, so as to enable expeditious and
optimum development of the mineral resources of the country.
27. What was the nature of the proposed amendments? As far as we are
concerned, the introduction of Section 10B in the MMDR Act (relating to
competitive bidding) is significant and this reads:
“Mining leases for notified minerals
10B. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained elsewhere in this Act,
but subject to the provisions of Section 10A and Section 17A, the
procedure for obtaining a mining lease for notified minerals in
respect of land in which the minerals vest in the Government shall
be as laid down in this Section.
(2) and (3) xxx
(4) For the purpose of granting a mining lease in respect of any
notified mineral in such notified area, the State Government shall
select, through auction by a method of competitive bidding,
including e-auction, an applicant who satisfies the eligibility
conditions.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 22 of 101
(5) The Central Government shall prescribe the terms and
conditions, and procedure, subject to which the auction will be
conducted, including the bidding parameters for the selection, which
could include a share in the production of the mineral, or any
payment linked to the royalty payable, or any other relevant
parameter, or any combination or modification of them.
(6) and (7) xxx”
[Iron ore was proposed as a notified mineral in the draft statute].
28. Immediately after 4th November, 2014 (the date on which the Grant of
Mining Leases Policy was uploaded on the website of the Government of
Goa) the State Government commenced granting a second renewal of the
mining leases from 5th November, 2014 onwards and that process was
completed on 12th January, 2015. The following table gives the dates of
second renewal of 88 mining leases granted by the State Government on or
before 12th January, 2015:
Sr. No. Date of renewal order Number of renewal orders passed
1. 5.11.2014 5
2. 6.11.2014 5
3. 7.11.2014 3
4. 10.12.2014 3
5. 24.12.2014 10
6. 1.1.2015 3
7. 2.1.2015 3
8. 5.1.2015 2
9. 6.1.2015 22
10. 9.1.2015 1
11. 12.1.2015 31
TOTAL = 88
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 23 of 101
29. The date of 12th January, 2015 is significant since on that date the
President promulgated the Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 (which was later enacted by
Parliament) whereby the grant of mining leases for notified minerals was
through competitive bidding or the auction process. It is important to
mention here that the approval of the Ordinance by the Cabinet of the
Government of India became public knowledge on 5th January, 20158
and it
is within a week from that date that the Government of Goa granted a second
renewal to 25 mining leases and to make matters worse, a second renewal
was granted to 31 mining leases on 12th January, 2015 the day the Ordinance
came into force making a total of 56 renewals of mining leases.
Environmental clearance and orders dated 20th March, 2015
30. Following the renewal of 88 mining leases, the State of Goa requested
the MoEF by letters dated 7th January, 2015 and 5th February, 2015 to lift the
abeyance order of 14th September, 2012 on the environmental clearances.
Consequently, the MoEF passed three orders on 20th March, 2015 (the actual
sequence of the orders is not very clear).
8
http://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/narendra-modi-cabinet-approves-ordinance-for-minesauction/story/214253.html
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Cabinet-approves-ordinance-for-minesauction/articleshow/45765290.cms
http://www.financialexpress.com/economy/reforms-cabinet-approves-ordinance-for-mines-auction/26342/
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/VDXphnUmPYGbN4lmzEBslK/Govt-passes-executive-order-to-auctionminerals.html
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 24 of 101
31. The first order of 20th March, 2015 was in the form of a letter
addressed to the Principal Secretary, Environment, Government of Goa and
it recorded that MoEF had considered all the 139 cases in which the
abeyance order has been passed and had taken into account the request of the
State Government, the recommendation of the EAC and the directions of
this Court. It was noted that the EAC had observed that there were
violations of the following nature: (i) No clearance from the National Board
of Wildlife and non-compliance of orders of this Court on the subject; (ii)
Excess production; (iii) Dump mining; (iv) Intersecting ground water table
and drawal of ground water without permission of the Central Ground Water
Board; (v) No forest clearance obtained where required; (vi) Encroachment
and false information/concealment of fact. It was stated that the MoEF had
decided to refer the cases to the appropriate authorities (including the State
Government) for taking action on the violations. Accordingly, a request was
made to examine the report of the EAC and take appropriate action against
the concerned lessees.
32. The second order passed on 20th March, 2015 was an Office
Memorandum to the effect that if a project proponent has a valid and
subsisting environmental clearance for a mining project under the
Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 27
th January, 1994 (EIA
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 25 of 101
1994) or Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 14th September,
2006 (EIA 2006), it will not be required to obtain a fresh environmental
clearance at the time of renewal of the mining lease. This was subject to the
maximum period of validity of 30 years for the environmental clearance for
a mining lease.
33. The third order passed on 20th March, 2015 related to lifting the
abeyance order dated 14th September, 2012 on the environmental clearance
of the mining leases for iron ore and manganese ore. The cases of all 139
mining leases in which the abeyance order was passed were considered and
the abeyance order lifted in respect of 72 cases. The details in this regard
are given in the table below:
Number Remarks Remaining
Total mines = 139
2 Inadvertent repetitions 137
2 Already withdrawn 135
12 Fully located in Protected Area (abeyance
order cannot be lifted)
123
6 Partly located in Protected Area (abeyance
order cannot be lifted)
117
23 Within 1 km. of Protected Area (awaiting
modification of order dated 4.8.2006 passed
by this Court)
94
22 Not having any Forest Clearance and will be
considered only after clearance is obtained
72
35 Environmental Clearance already granted
under EIA Notification of 27.1.1994 and no
fresh clearance is required in view of Office
Memorandum dated 20.3.2015.
Abeyance order lifted.
37
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 26 of 101
37 Environmental Clearance already granted
under EIA Notification of 14.9.2006.
Abeyance order lifted.
0
Abeyance order lifted on 20th March, 2015 for 72 mines out of 139
34. The third order of 20th March, 2015 also placed certain additional
specific conditions while lifting the abeyance order. These additional
conditions were:
1. State Government of Goa shall develop and implement a credible
mechanism to regularly monitor and ensure that capping of 20
MTPA on the mining leases in the State of Goa is implemented
as per the directions of Hon‟ble Supreme Court in its order dated
21.04.2014 and any further order in the matter of Goa
Foundation vs. Union of India in W.P. 435 of 2012.
2. No Mining shall be allowed in the forest land for which FC
[forest clearance] is not available.
3. The Mining of dumps is not permitted unless mentioned in
approved mine plan and Environmental Clearance letter.
4. Dumping of material outside the mine lease is not permitted
unless mentioned in approved mine plan and Environmental
Clearance letter.
5. Prior permission be obtained from Central Ground Water Board
for drawl of ground water and intersection of ground water table
as applicable.
6. Violations will be dealt as per the existing law and lifting of
abeyance of EC will not in any manner affect that.
7. If any violation is observed in future the environmental clearance
will be cancelled as per rules.
8. State Government will take action in cases of violation under
Section 15/19 of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 as noted
and recommended in EAC report.
9. Project Proponent will file six monthly compliance to Regional
Officer, MoEFCC and State Pollution Control Board.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 27 of 101
Questions for consideration
35. Broadly speaking, on the basis of the submissions and documents
placed before us, the questions raised by the Goa Foundation, the State of
Goa, the Union of India and the mining lease holders are three-fold:
(a) Relatable to the second renewal of the mining leases: (i) In view of
the decision in Goa Foundation only fresh leases were to be granted by the
State of Goa and not second renewals. (ii) For granting fresh leases, the State
of Goa should have introduced competitive bidding or the auction process.
(iii) Assuming the decision to grant a second renewal to the mining lease
holders was valid, the second renewals were not in accordance with law and
should be set aside.
(b) Relatable to the grant of environmental clearances: In view of the
decision in Goa Foundation fresh environmental clearances were required
to be obtained by the mining lease holders.
(c) The impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court in
Lithoferro on 13th August, 2014 was erroneous and deserves to be set aside.
Whether fresh mining leases were required to be granted?
36. The controversy in this regard has arisen in view of what is stated in
paragraph 82 of the decision in Goa Foundation. It was stated as follows:
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 28 of 101
“As we have held that the deemed mining leases of the lessees in
Goa expired on 22-11-1987 and the maximum period (20 years) of
renewal of the deemed mining leases in Goa has also expired on 22-
11-2007, mining by the lessees in Goa after 22-11-2007 was illegal.
Hence, the Order dated 10-9-2012 of the Government of Goa
suspending mining operations in the State of Goa and the Order
dated 14-9-2012 of MoEF, Government of India, suspending the
environmental clearances granted to the mines in the State of Goa,
which have been impugned in the writ petitions in the Bombay High
Court, Goa Bench (transferred to this Court and registered as
transferred cases) cannot be quashed by this Court. The Order
dated 10.9.2012 of the Government of Goa and the Order dated
14.9.2012 of the MoEF will have to continue till decisions are
taken by the State Government to grant fresh leases and
decisions are taken by MoEF to grant fresh environmental
clearances for mining projects.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
37. The issue that arose for discussion before us was the meaning and
intention of the Court in the context of grant of „fresh leases‟ for mining
projects. Did the Court literally mean that a fresh mining lease was required
to be granted or was a second renewal sufficient compliance?
38. As the above quoted paragraph indicates, the Court was aware and
conscious of the fact that the mining leases had expired on 22nd November,
2007 and the mining operations thereafter carried out by the mining lease
holders was illegal. For this reason, the Court held that the suspension order
passed by the State of Goa on 10th September, 2012 and the abeyance order
passed by the MoEF on 14th September, 2012 did not require any
interference.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 29 of 101
39. Since the mining operations carried out after 22nd November, 2007
were illegal, the Court, in subsequent paragraphs of the judgment noted (as a
follow up) that an order was passed on 5th October, 2012 suspending
transportation of iron ore and manganese ore from those leases identified by
the Justice Shah Commission.9
Thereafter on 11th November, 2013 it was
directed that an inventory be made of the excavated mineral ores and the
inventoried mineral ores be sold by e-auction under the supervision of a
Monitoring Committee.10
40. Further, it was held by the Court on 21st April, 2014 that from the eauction
sale of the mineral ores, the mining lease holders would be entitled
to the average cost (not the actual cost) of extraction, the workers would be
entitled to 50% wages and allowances on the principle of laid-off
compensation and the Marmagao Port Trust would be entitled to 50% of the
storage charges. Out of the balance amount, 10% would be appropriated to
the Goan Iron Ore Permanent Fund for the purpose of sustainable
development and intergenerational equity and the remaining amount would
be appropriated by the State who is the owner of the mineral ores illegally
excavated by the mining lease holders and sold by e-auction.
9
Goa Foundation v. Union of India, WP (C) 435 of 2012 – order dated 5th October, 2012
10 Goa Foundation v. Union of India, (2014) 6 SCC 738
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 30 of 101
With this in mind, the Court declared in paragraph 87.5 of the Report:
“It is for the State Government to decide as a matter of policy in
what manner mining leases are to be granted in future but the
constitutionality or legality of the decision of the State Government
can be examined by the Court in exercise of its power of judicial
review.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
It was then directed by the Court in paragraph 88.4 of the Report as
follows:
“The State Government may grant mining leases of iron ore and
other ores in Goa in accordance with its policy decision and in
accordance with the MMDR Act and the Rules made thereunder in
consonance with the constitutional provisions.” [Emphasis supplied
by us].
41. The Court was quite obviously aware that it was concerned, inter alia,
with the second renewal of mining leases and yet it chose to recount the
factual situation, make a declaration and pass a direction without adverting
to the possibility of a second renewal of a mining lease. The Court was also
conscious that the mining lease holders had carried out indiscriminate and
illegal mining for about five years (from November 2007 to September
2012) and had made profits out of the illegal mining. The Court, in our
opinion, was rather charitable in not penalizing the mining lease holders for
the illegal mining carried out by them. But be that as it may, quite clearly,
the sequence of events from September 2012 onwards, the appointment of a
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 31 of 101
Monitoring Committee to dispose of the illegally mined ore, the declaration
and direction unmistakably point to the intention of the Court to end the
sordid chapter of illegal mining by the lease holders and start on a clean
slate. Viewed in this perspective, we have no doubt that the Court really did
intend the State of Goa to consider the grant of fresh leases in accordance
with law.
42. In this context, the declaration of the Court in Goa Foundation in
paragraph 87.5 of Report is also quite clear, namely, “It is for the State
Government to decide as a matter of policy in what manner mining leases
are to be granted in future….” The declaration was explicit and related to
the grant of mining leases and not a second renewal.
43. Similarly, the direction given in paragraph 88.4 of the Report that
“The State Government may grant mining leases of iron ore and other ores
in Goa in accordance with its policy decision…..” was equally explicit and
related to the grant of mining leases and not a second renewal.
44. Subsequent events confirm our impression and view. The decision of
the Court to e-auction the mined mineral ore was sought to be recalled
through I.A. No. 86 of 2014 filed by M/s Bandekar Brothers Private Ltd.
The applicant prayed for a direction to restrain the authorities from eauctioning
the iron ore mined by it prior to 22nd November, 2007 and that
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 32 of 101
the mined ore should be released to the applicant with the right to dispose of
the same. A Bench of three learned judges (other than those that decided
Goa Foundation) noted that: “The submissions advanced on behalf of the
applicant were premised merely on the assertion, that the mineral ore which
the applicant was claiming a right over, had been legitimately mined before
22.11.2007, and therefore, the applicant had an absolute and legitimate
ownership over the same. We may note, that the above position was
emphasized, stressed and persistently reiterated to make the stand absolutely
crystal clear.” The learned judges considered the submissions and held by an
order dated 14th October, 2014 that the direction in Goa Foundation was
clear and categorical that the iron ore vested in the State Government and
therefore the application deserved dismissal. In other words, the mining
lease holders deserved no latitude for the illegal mining and all issues
needed to be dealt with strictly.
45. There is additional material to support the view that the Court had
intended the State of Goa to grant fresh mining leases rather than grant a
second renewal.
46. From a reading of the decision rendered by the Bombay High Court in
Lithoferro (subject matter of SLP (C) No. 32138 of 2015 and SLP (C) Nos.
32699-32727 of 2015) it is evident that the State of Goa understood the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 33 of 101
decision of this Court in Goa Foundation to mean that fresh mining leases
were required to be granted on the basis of a policy yet to be framed by the
State of Goa and the issue of second renewals did not survive consideration.
The contention of the learned Advocate General of the State of Goa in this
regard is recorded by the High Court in the following words:
“The learned Advocate General [of the State of Goa] took us through
the Judgment of the Apex Court in Writ Petition (C) 435/2012 and
relied upon the observations of the Supreme Court in paras 67, 68,
69 and 70. The learned Advocate General submitted that the
Honourable Supreme Court has held that the deemed mining leases
of the lessees in Goa expired on 22nd November, 1987 and the
maximum of 20 years renewal period of the deemed mining leases in
Goa as provided under subsection (2) of Section 8 of the MMDR
Act, read with sub-Rules 8 and 9 of Rule 24-A of the MC Rules
expired on 22nd November, 2007. The learned Advocate General
submitted that in view of these findings of the Supreme Court,
there is no question of renewal of the mining leases. The learned
Advocate General submitted that in terms of the Supreme Court
decision, it is for the State Government to grant fresh leases in
accordance with the policy which is yet to be framed. The learned
Advocate General submitted that the Supreme Court has kept Writ
Petition (C) 435/2012 pending and, therefore, it is for the petitioners
to approach the Supreme Court and seek appropriate orders. The
learned Advocate General submitted that the orders on which
the petitioners rely, at the most show that the Government in
principle has agreed for renewal of the leases for a further
period of 20 years and the same was not a final decision. He
submitted that in terms of the said decision of the Apex Court, it
is for the State Government to frame a fresh mining policy and
after framing the same, to decide granting of fresh mining
leases.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
47. While considering the submissions of the learned Advocate General
and learned counsel, the High Court noted that this Court was alive to the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 34 of 101
fact that the State of Goa had granted in-principle second renewal to 28
mining leases and had collected renewal fees or stamp duty from 27 mining
leases (presumably out of the 28 mining leases) as stated in the brief resume
filed by the State of Goa in this Court. The High Court noted:
(II) In the brief resume presented by the State of Goa and placed on
record of the Supreme Court, in Writ Petition (C) 435/2012, it is
inter alia, mentioned thus:
“…Presently in the State of Goa, it is found that the Applications for
Renewal were filed well within time as contemplated by Rule 24A
of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960. Presently, the State has
ordered renewal of 28 mining leases, granted in principle approvals
and has collected Renewal Fees/Stamp Duty from 27 Mining
Leases..”
48. In other words, notwithstanding the in-principle grant of second
renewal of 28 mining leases and collection of renewal fees or stamp duty,
this Court in Goa Foundation consciously required the State of Goa to grant
fresh leases. What is equally significant is that the State of Goa also
understood the decision of the Court in the same manner and intended to act
on that basis.
49. Unfortunately, the State of Goa was overtaken by events in that the
High Court delivered its judgment in Lithoferro on 13th August, 2014 and
while doing so, it misunderstood or incorrectly appreciated the decision of
this Court in Goa Foundation and disagreed with the view of the State of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 35 of 101
Goa. While this Court had required the State of Goa to grant fresh mining
leases and the State of Goa was willing to comply with this direction, the
High Court instead directed it to execute mining leases under Section 8(3) of
the MMDR Act in respect of those who had paid the renewal fees or stamp
duty. The High Court also directed the State of Goa to decide their pending
second renewal applications within a period of three months keeping in mind
the provisions of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act (presumably after paying
the renewal fees or stamp duty in terms of the Government order of 21st
February, 2013). The understanding by the High Court of the decision of
this Court in Goa Foundation is totally incorrect.
50. It appears from the contents of the Grant of Mining Leases Policy that
in view of the decision of this Court in Goa Foundation the State was
actively considering a policy for granting fresh mining leases by considering
several factors. However, the decision and directions of the High Court
supervened leaving no choice, according to the State, but to completely
abandon the process of grant of fresh mining leases through the process of
competitive bidding for earning revenue and justify the abandonment.
51. As per the Grant of Mining Leases Policy, the State of Goa therefore
had two realistic options before it: (i) To implement the judgment and order
of this Court in Goa Foundation (as understood by the State of Goa) and
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 36 of 101
grant fresh mining leases in the manner felt appropriate and in accordance
with law; (ii) To abide by the judgment of the High Court (and its
understanding of the judgment of this Court in Goa Foundation while
rejecting its understanding by the State of Goa) and grant second renewal to
the mining leases in terms of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act. The State of
Goa appears to have taken the view that challenging the decision of the High
Court (and therefore abiding by the decision of this Court) would delay the
commencement of mining operations. The State took into consideration that
a substantial portion of its revenue comes from the mining sector and that
the State had been virtually starved of funds on account of stoppage of
mining operations. Therefore, the State decided to grant a second renewal to
the mining leases and not grant fresh leases. This is quite apparent from the
contents of the Grant of Mining Leases Policy wherein the above facts and
conclusions have been stated in greater detail. Was this decision correct?
52. Learned counsel for the mining lease holders submitted that the
renewal of a mining lease is equivalent to or amounts to the grant of a fresh
lease and therefore when the mining leases were renewed, it amounted to the
grant of a fresh lease in compliance with the directions of this Court.
Reliance was placed upon Delhi Development Authority v. Durga Chand
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 37 of 101
Kaushish11 wherein this Court held:
“A renewal of a lease is really the grant of a fresh lease. It is called a
“renewal” simply because it postulates the existence of a prior lease
which generally provides for renewals as of right. In all other
respects, it is really a fresh lease.”
53. Reference was also made to Provash Chandra Dalui v. Biswanath
Banerjee12 in which it was held in paragraph 14 of the Report that there is a
distinction between extension of a lease and renewal of a lease. We do not
find any relevance of this to our discussion. Reference was also made to the
view expressed in M.C. Mehta v. Union of India13 wherein this Court noted
that it is settled law that grant of renewal is a fresh grant and must be
consistent with law.
54. Finally reliance was placed on State of West Bengal v. Calcutta
Mineral Supply Company Private Limited14 in which decision it was noted
in paragraph 31 of the Report that the renewal of a lease is a fresh grant.
This decision also refers to Gajraj Singh v. State Transport Appellate
Tribunal15 wherein this Court observed in paragraph 38 of the Report that
the grant of renewal is a fresh grant though it breathes life into the operation
of the previous lease or licence granted.
11 (1973) 2 SCC 825
12 1989 Supp (1) SCC 487
13 (2004) 12 SCC 118
14 (2015) 8 SCC 655
15 (1997) 1 SCC 650
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 38 of 101
55. There is no doubt that the renewal of a lease is virtually the same as
the grant of a fresh lease but a converse direction to grant a mining lease
cannot be understood to mean granting a renewal of a mining lease.
Obviously, the grant of a fresh lease is not the same as the renewal of a lease
and when the Court in Goa Foundation required the State of Goa to grant a
fresh lease, it did not require the State to renew the existing (expired) lease.
The Court could have explicitly declared and directed the State of Goa to
grant a second renewal of the mining leases rather than to say it in a
roundabout manner that it should do so by granting a fresh lease equivalent
to a renewal. We simply cannot accept the submissions made by learned
counsel for the mining lease holders in this regard.
56. That apart, as we have already noted above, the context and material
on record disabuse the thought that the Court in Goa Foundation did not
mandate the grant of fresh mining leases in accordance with law.
57. Learned counsel for the mining lease holders contended that the very
same learned judges that decided Goa Foundation permitted the State
Government in Common Cause v. Union of India16 to consider granting a
second renewal of mining leases under Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act.
Therefore the requirement in Goa Foundation for the grant of „fresh leases‟
16 (2014) 14 SCC 155
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 39 of 101
must be understood in a manner similar to what was directed in Common
Cause. We are unable to accept this contention. The direction given in
Common Cause was an interim direction and not a final direction as in Goa
Foundation. Moreover, the facts in both cases are not at all similar so as to
warrant a similar order being passed or understood. Finally, the fact that the
same set of learned judges thought it fit to direct the grant of „fresh leases‟ in
one set of cases and thought it fit to direct consideration of a „second
renewal‟ in another set of cases indicates that the learned judges were aware
of the difference in directions. Therefore when the leaned judges directed the
grant of „fresh leases‟ in Goa Foundation it was a deliberate and conscious
decision distinct and different from granting a second renewal of expired
mining leases.
58. In our opinion, the direction in Goa Foundation is quite clear and
instead of considering the grant of a second renewal of the mining leases, the
State of Goa was required to consider the grant of fresh mining leases.
Therefore the decision of the State of Goa to grant a second renewal of the
mining leases is erroneous, contrary to the decision in Goa Foundation and
must be and is quashed.
Whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining leases?
59. As mentioned in the Grant of Mining Leases Policy there were several
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 40 of 101
options available to the State of Goa. It took the view that all its options
were foreclosed post the decision of the High Court and it was obliged to
grant a second renewal of the mining leases. We have already held that this
was not so and that the decision to grant a second renewal of the mining
leases was erroneous and fresh leases were required to be granted in
accordance with the decision in Goa Foundation. In view of our conclusion,
the discussion on whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining
leases through a process of competitive bidding is now rendered academic.
However, since detailed submissions were made by learned counsel on both
sides, including by the learned Additional Solicitor General, we propose to
express our views on the subject.
60. The discussion on the question of auction being the only method of
allocation or disposal of natural resources arose due to the view expressed
by this Court in Centre for Public Interest Litigation v. Union of India.
17 In
that decision (hereafter referred to as CPIL – although this case is generally
referred to as the 2G scam case) the Court dealt with the question of
following a non-discriminatory policy for alienation of natural resources.
While doing so it was observed that an auction is “perhaps the best method
for discharging this burden” and concluded by holding that “while
17 (2012) 3 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 41 of 101
transferring or alienating the natural resources, the State is duty-bound to
adopt the method of auction by giving wide publicity so that all eligible
persons can participate in the process.” This led to the belief that the view of
this Court was that natural resources should be alienated or disposed of only
by auction and by no other method. The Court held in paragraphs 95 and 96
of the Report as follows:
“This Court has repeatedly held that wherever a contract is to be
awarded or a licence is to be given, the public authority must adopt a
transparent and fair method for making selections so that all eligible
persons get a fair opportunity of competition. To put it differently,
the State and its agencies/instrumentalities must always adopt a
rational method for disposal of public property and no attempt
should be made to scuttle the claim of worthy applicants. When it
comes to alienation of scarce natural resources like spectrum, etc. it
is the burden of the State to ensure that a non-discriminatory method
is adopted for distribution and alienation, which would necessarily
result in protection of national/public interest.
In our view, a duly publicised auction conducted fairly and
impartially is perhaps the best method for discharging this burden
and the methods like first-come-first-served when used for alienation
of natural resources/public property are likely to be misused by
unscrupulous people who are only interested in garnering maximum
financial benefit and have no respect for the constitutional ethos and
values. In other words, while transferring or alienating the
natural resources, the State is duty-bound to adopt the method
of auction by giving wide publicity so that all eligible persons
can participate in the process.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
61. In Manohar Lal Sharma v. Principal Secretary18 a Bench of 3 judges
of this Court paraphrased the above passages and observed that the view
18 (2014) 9 SCC 516
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 42 of 101
expressed in CPIL necessitated a reference by the President of India to this
Court under Article 143(1) of the Constitution being Special Reference No.
1 – Natural Resources Allocation.
19
62. What was the Advisory Opinion given by this Court in Natural
Resources Allocation? Among the questions referred for opinion were the
following:
Question 1. Whether the only permissible method for disposal of all
natural resources across all sectors and in all circumstances is by the
conduct of auctions?
Question 2. Whether a broad proposition of law that only the route
of auctions can be resorted to for disposal of natural resources does
not run contrary to several judgments of the Supreme Court
including those of the larger Benches?
63. In the Reference, it was submitted before the Constitution Bench that
paragraphs 94 to 96 in CPIL laid down the ratio vis-à-vis disposal of natural
resources. It was argued that “these paragraphs lay down, as a proposition of
law, that all natural resources across all sectors, and in all circumstances are
to be disposed of by way of public auction, and on the other [hand], it was
urged that the observations therein were made only qua spectrum.”
64. The submissions made by learned counsel were then discussed and
thereafter this Court recorded its conclusions between paragraphs 82 and 84
of Natural Resources Allocation. In paragraph 84, it was held:
19 (2012) 10 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 43 of 101
“84. Thus, having come to the conclusion that 2G case20 does not
deal with modes of allocation for natural resources, other than
spectrum, we shall now proceed to answer the first question of the
Reference pertaining to other natural resources, as the question
subsumes the essence of the entire reference, particularly the set of
first five questions.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
65. Thereafter, while answering the first question in the Reference, the
Court considered the issue from various perspectives. It first dealt with the
issue in the context of Article 14 and Article 39(b) of the Constitution and
concluded in paragraph 120 of the Report that the disposal of natural
resources for revenue maximization through auctions is not a constitutional
mandate. It was held:
“Therefore, in conclusion, the submission that the mandate of Article
14 is that any disposal of a natural resource for commercial use must
be for revenue maximisation, and thus by auction, is based neither
on law nor on logic. There is no constitutional imperative in the
matter of economic policies—Article 14 does not predefine any
economic policy as a constitutional mandate. Even the mandate of
Article 39(b) imposes no restrictions on the means adopted to
subserve the public good and uses the broad term “distribution”,
suggesting that the methodology of distribution is not fixed.
Economic logic establishes that alienation/allocation of natural
resources to the highest bidder may not necessarily be the only way
to subserve the common good, and at times, may run counter to
public good. Hence, it needs little emphasis that disposal of all
natural resources through auctions is clearly not a constitutional
mandate.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
66. The issue was then considered from the standpoint of legitimate
deviations from an auction. After adverting to several decisions of this Court
20 Centre for Public Interest Litigation v. Union of India (CPIL case or 2G scam case)
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 44 of 101
where auctions were not the favoured method of allocation of natural
resources, it was held between paragraphs 129 and 131 of the Report as
follows:
“Hence, it is manifest that there is no constitutional mandate in
favour of auction under Article 14. The Government has repeatedly
deviated from the course of auction and this Court has repeatedly
upheld such actions. The judiciary tests such deviations on the
limited scope of arbitrariness and fairness under Article 14 and its
role is limited to that extent. Essentially, whenever the object of
policy is anything but revenue maximisation, the executive is
seen to adopt methods other than auction.
A fortiori, besides legal logic, mandatory auction may be contrary to
economic logic as well. Different resources may require different
treatment. Very often, exploration and exploitation contracts are
bundled together due to the requirement of heavy capital in the
discovery of natural resources. A concern would risk undertaking
such exploration and incur heavy costs only if it was assured
utilisation of the resource discovered: a prudent business
venture would not like to incur the high costs involved in
exploration activities and then compete for that resource in an
open auction. The logic is similar to that applied in patents. Firms
are given incentives to invest in research and development with the
promise of exclusive access to the market for the sale of that
invention. Such an approach is economically and legally sound and
sometimes necessary to spur research and development. Similarly,
bundling exploration and exploitation contracts may be necessary to
spur growth in a specific industry.
Similar deviation from auction cannot be ruled out when the object
of a State policy is to promote domestic development of an industry,
like in Kasturi Lal case21discussed above. However, these examples
are purely illustrative in order to demonstrate that auction cannot be
the sole criterion for alienation of all natural resources.”
[Emphasis supplied by us].
21 (1980) 4 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 45 of 101
67. Finally, the issue was considered from the point of view of the
potential of abuse in allocation of natural resources other than through
auction and in this context it was held in paragraph 135 of the Report:
“Therefore, a potential for abuse cannot be the basis for striking
down a method as ultra vires the Constitution. It is the actual abuse
itself that must be brought before the court for being tested on
the anvil of constitutional provisions. In fact, it may be said that
even auction has a potential of abuse, like any other method of
allocation, but that cannot be the basis of declaring it as an
unconstitutional methodology either. These drawbacks include
cartelisation, the “winner's curse” (the phenomenon by which a
bidder bids a higher, unrealistic and unexecutable price just to
surpass the competition; or where a bidder, in case of multiple
auctions, bids for all the resources and ends up winning licences for
exploitation of more resources than he can pragmatically execute),
etc. However, all the same, auction cannot be called ultra vires for
the said reasons and continues to be an attractive and preferred
means of disposal of natural resources especially when revenue
maximisation is a priority. Therefore, neither auction, nor any
other method of disposal can be held ultra vires the
Constitution, merely because of a potential abuse.” [Emphasis
supplied by us].
68. The conclusion arrived at by the Constitution Bench was then
recorded between paragraphs 148 and 150 of the Report in the following
words:
“In our opinion, auction despite being a more preferable method
of alienation/allotment of natural resources, cannot be held to be a
constitutional requirement or limitation for alienation of all natural
resources and therefore, every method other than auction cannot be
struck down as ultra vires the constitutional mandate.
Regard being had to the aforesaid precepts, we have opined that
auction as a mode cannot be conferred the status of a constitutional
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 46 of 101
principle. Alienation of natural resources is a policy decision, and
the means adopted for the same are thus, executive prerogatives.
However, when such a policy decision is not backed by a social
or welfare purpose, and precious and scarce natural resources
are alienated for commercial pursuits of profit maximising
private entrepreneurs, adoption of means other than those that
are competitive and maximise revenue may be arbitrary and
face the wrath of Article 14 of the Constitution. Hence, rather
than prescribing or proscribing a method, we believe, a judicial
scrutiny of methods of disposal of natural resources should depend
on the facts and circumstances of each case, in consonance with the
principles which we have culled out above. Failing which, the Court,
in exercise of power of judicial review, shall term the executive
action as arbitrary, unfair, unreasonable and capricious due to its
antimony with Article 14 of the Constitution.
In conclusion, our answer to the first set of five questions is that
auctions are not the only permissible method for disposal of all
natural resources across all sectors and in all circumstances.”
[Emphasis supplied by us].
69. It is therefore more than explicit that there is no constitutional
requirement (let alone a mandate) for allocation of natural resources through
the auction method (other than spectrum) but at the same time the auction
process should not be given a go-bye without any justification – the decision
to give a go-bye is judicially reviewable though the scope of judicial review
might be rather restricted. The melting pot of allocation of a natural
resource, a social or welfare purpose and adherence to the requirements of
Articles 14 and 39(b) of the Constitution in matters of policy was a great
leap forward fashioned by the Constitution Bench. Consequently, while
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 47 of 101
there is no mandate, constitutional or otherwise, that natural resource
allocation must be only by auction, it is certainly “a more preferable
method”. There are exceptions, such as when the natural resource allocation
is for a “social or welfare purpose”. On the other hand if the natural resource
allocation is “for commercial pursuits of profit maximising private
entrepreneurs” de hors any social or welfare purpose, then judicial review
would be permissible and Article 14 of the Constitution would be attracted
and if the executive action is found to be arbitrary, it would be struck down.
Therefore, when it comes to natural resource allocation, the executive has a
somewhat limited elbow room.
70. In his concurring opinion, Justice Khehar took the view (in paragraph
186 of the Report) that: “…when natural resources are made available by the
State to private persons for commercial exploitation exclusively for their
individual gains, the State's endeavour must be towards maximisation of
revenue returns.” [Emphasis supplied by us] The learned judge concluded
his opinion by agreeing that an auction is one of the price recovery
mechanisms, but not the only one for allocation of natural resources. “That
should not be understood to mean that it can never be a valid method for
disposal of natural resources.” It was further held that natural resources
cannot be alienated by way of largesse – there must be a reciprocal
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 48 of 101
consideration either in the form of earning revenue or sub-serving the
common good or both. The learned judge had this to say:
“The policy of allocation of natural resources for public good can be
defined by the legislature, as has been discussed in the foregoing
paragraphs. Likewise, policy for allocation of natural resources may
also be determined by the executive. The parameters for determining
the legality and constitutionality of the two are exactly the same. In
the aforesaid view of the matter, there can be no doubt about the
conclusion recorded in the main opinion that auction which is just
one of the several price recovery mechanisms, cannot be held to be
the only constitutionally recognised method for alienation of natural
resources. That should not be understood to mean that it can never
be a valid method for disposal of natural resources (refer to paras
186 to 188 of my instant opinion).
I would, therefore, conclude by stating that no part of the natural
resource can be dissipated as a matter of largesse, charity,
donation or endowment, for private exploitation. Each bit of
natural resource expended must bring back a reciprocal
consideration. The consideration may be in the nature of earning
revenue or may be to “best subserve the common good”. It may
well be the amalgam of the two. There cannot be a dissipation of
material resources free of cost or at a consideration lower than
their actual worth. One set of citizens cannot prosper at the cost of
another set of citizens, for that would not be fair or reasonable.”
[Emphasis supplied by us].
71. This issue was considered in Goa Foundation as well. The Court
adverted to Natural Resources Allocation in paragraph 81 of the Report and
pithily expressed its view that the manner of granting a mining lease is a
policy decision of the State Government, but the decision can be examined
by way of judicial review. It was held:
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 49 of 101
“We are of the considered opinion that it is for the State Government
to decide as a matter of policy in what manner the leases of these
mineral resources would be granted, but this decision has to be taken
in accordance with the provisions of the MMDR Act and the Rules
made thereunder and in consonance with the constitutional
provisions and the decision taken by the State of Goa to grant a
mining lease in a particular manner or to a particular party can be
examined by way of judicial review by the Court.” [Emphasis
supplied by us].
It was then declared in paragraph 87.5 of the Report that:
“It is for the State Government to decide as a matter of policy in
what manner mining leases are to be granted in future but the
constitutionality or legality of the decision of the State
Government can be examined by the Court in exercise of its
power of judicial review.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
Similarly, in Manohar Lal Sharma this Court adverted to the issue
and noted the following in paragraph 98 of the Report:
“The Constitution Bench [Natural Resources Allocation] clarified
that the statement of law in 2G case [CPIL] that while transferring or
alienating the natural resources, the State is duty-bound to adopt the
method of auction was confined to the specific case of spectrum and
not for dispensation of all natural resources. The Constitution Bench
said that findings of this Court in 2G case were limited to the case of
spectrum and not beyond that and that it did not deal with the modes
of allocation for natural resources other than spectrum.”
The Court also referred to the views expressed by Justice Khehar and
held, in paragraph 104 of the Report:
“In light of the above legal position, the argument that auction is the
best way to select private parties as per Article 39(b) does not merit
acceptance.”
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 50 of 101
72. This Court then exercised its power of judicial review and considered
the merits of the explanation given by the Central Government for not
adopting the competitive bidding route for the allocation of coal blocks. The
various submissions made, the various hurdles faced (including objections of
the State Governments) as well as the impracticality of opening up the
allocation of coal blocks to competitive bidding were considered and then it
was held (after opening the window of Article 14 of the Constitution) in
paragraph 110 of the Report:
“The above facts show that it took almost 8 years in putting in place
allocation of captive coal blocks through competitive bidding.
During this period, many coal blocks were allocated giving rise to
present controversy, which was avoidable because competitive
bidding would have brought in transparency, objectivity and very
importantly given a level playing field to all applicants of coal and
lowered the difference between the market price of coal and the cost
of coal for the allottee by way of premium which would have
accrued to the Government. Be that as it may, once it is laid down by
the Constitution Bench of this Court in Natural Resources
Allocation that the Court cannot conduct a comparative study of
various methods of distribution of natural resources and cannot
mandate one method to be followed in all facts and circumstances,
then if the grave situation of shortage of power prevailing at that
time necessitated private participation and the Government felt that
it would have been impractical and unrealistic to allocate coal blocks
through auction and later on in 2004 or so there was serious
opposition by many State Governments to bidding system, and the
Government did not pursue competitive bidding/public auction
route, then in our view, the administrative decision of the
Government not to pursue competitive bidding cannot be said to be
so arbitrary or unreasonable warranting judicial interference. It is not
the domain of the Court to evaluate the advantages of competitive
bidding vis-à-vis other methods of distribution/disposal of natural
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 51 of 101
resources. However, if the allocation of subject coal blocks is
inconsistent with Article 14 of the Constitution and the
procedure that has been followed in such allocation is found to
be unfair, unreasonable, discriminatory, non-transparent,
capricious or suffers from favouritism or nepotism and violative
of the mandate of Article 14 of the Constitution, the
consequences of such unconstitutional or illegal allocation must
follow.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
73. More recently in M/s. Ajar Enterprises Private Limited v.
Satyanarayan Somani22 this Court once again examined the issue of
distribution of natural resources and held:
“Undoubtedly, disposal of natural resources by auction is not a
mandatory principle for, as the Constitution Bench held,
23 individual
statutes may provide for modalities of transfer by alternate modes
which subserve public interest. ….. The choice of methods is not left
to the unbridled discretion of a public authority. Where a public
authority exercises an executive prerogative, it must nonetheless act
in a manner which would subserve public interest and facilitate
the distribution of scarce natural resources in a manner that
would achieve public good. Where a public authority implements a
policy, which is backed by a constitutionally recognised social
purpose intended to achieve the welfare of the community, the
considerations which would govern would be different from those
when it alienates natural resources for commercial exploitation.
When a public body is actuated by a constitutional purpose
embodied in the Directive Principles, the considerations which
weigh with it in determining the mode of alienation should be such
as would achieve the underlying object. In certain cases, the
dominant consideration is not to maximize revenues but to
achieve social good such as when the alienation is to provide
affordable housing to members of the Scheduled Castes or
Tribes or to implement housing schemes for Below the Poverty
Line (BPL) families. In other cases where natural resources are
alienated for commercial exploitation, a public authority cannot
22 2017 (10) SCALE 346
23 Natural Resource Allocation
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 52 of 101
allow them to be dissipated at its unbridled discretion at the cost
of public interest.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
The window is now more than ajar.
74. Till fairly recently, policy matters particularly of economic policy
were hands-off as far as the courts were concerned.24 But the recent
decisions of this Court, including by the Constitution Bench in its advisory
jurisdiction, have partially modified this theory and kept open the window to
judicially review such a policy if it does not serve the common good as
understood in Article 39(b) of the Constitution, if it violates Article 14 of the
Constitution and alienates natural resources for maximizing profits of private
entrepreneurs while sidelining Article 39(b) of the Constitution. “The
legislature and the executive are answerable to the Constitution and it is
there where the judiciary, the guardian of the Constitution, must find the
contours to the powers of disposal of natural resources, especially Article 14
and Article 39(b) [of the Constitution].
25
75. Notwithstanding this, a Court must exercise restraint and not set
aside Government policy only because it disagrees with it or because a better
policy could be framed or simply because it has the power to set aside the
policy. Policies framed by the State, after due consideration, must be
24 BALCO Employees’ Union (Regd) v. Union of India, (2002) 2 SCC 333 at paragraphs 46 and 47
25 Paragraph 95 of the Natural Resource Allocation decision
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 53 of 101
respected and given enough elbow room and flexibility for implementation.
Of course, there would be occasions when the implementation of a policy
has teething problems or some lacuna is discovered at a slightly later stage,
but that does not mean that policy itself is defective. Therefore, Courts must
be very cautious and circumspect in diluting or setting aside a policy and
must do so only if it is constitutionally unavoidable, otherwise good
governance could be a casualty.
76. The conclusions that could be drawn from all these decisions are: (i) It
is not obligatory, constitutionally or otherwise, that a natural resource (other
than spectrum) must be disposed of or alienated or allocated only through an
auction or through competitive bidding; (ii) Where the distribution,
allocation, alienation or disposal of a natural resource is to a private party for
a commercial pursuit of maximizing profits, then an auction is a more
preferable method of such allotment; (iii) A decision to not auction a natural
resource is liable to challenge and subject to restricted and limited judicial
review under Article 14 of the Constitution; (iv) A decision to not auction a
natural resource and sacrifice maximization of revenues might be justifiable
if the decision is taken, inter alia, for the social good or the public good or
the common good; (v) Unless the alienation or disposal of a natural resource
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 54 of 101
is for the common good or a social or welfare purpose, it cannot be
dissipated in favour of a private entrepreneur virtually free of cost or for a
consideration not commensurate with its worth without attracting Article 14
and Article 39(b) of the Constitution.
Whether the decision of the State of Goa forsaking the auction route is
arbitrary?
77. Keeping in mind the broad principles identified above, the question
that arises for our consideration is whether the State of Goa was justified in
not adopting the auction route for the grant of mining leases and simply
granting a second renewal. For a better understanding of this issue, it would
be worthwhile to again refer to the Goa Mineral Policy, the report of the
EAC, the Grant of Mining Leases Policy and the decision of the Bombay
High Court, which documents were relied upon by the learned Additional
Solicitor General.
(i) Goa Mineral Policy
78. The Mineral Policy makes it very clear that during the period from
about 2006 till about 2012 (for about 5 years) extraction of iron ore in Goa
was nothing but a free-for-all situation. Illegalities and irregularities were
committed in abundance by all concerned, particularly the mining lease
holders. The Mineral Policy records that the State witnessed the peak of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 55 of 101
chaotic and unregulated mining. The thought of protecting and preserving
the environment, concern for the fragile ecology of Goa was far from the
thoughts of the stakeholders – even the well-being of the average Goan was
not taken into consideration by the stakeholders. A reading of the initial
paragraphs of the Mineral Policy suggests that nothing short of rapacious
mining was going on in Goa. Who were the beneficiaries of all this
rapaciousness? Could all this be ignored?
79. The Mineral Policy informs us that the beneficiaries of the
rapaciousness were not the domestic industry and certainly not the average
Goan. The reason for this is spelt out in the Mineral Policy itself. Iron ore
from Goa is not suitable for the Indian industry due to the low Fe content
and the high silica presence. Therefore, there is no value addition to the
Indian industry and the iron ore was mined only for export – mainly to
China and also to Japan. With a port in the vicinity, Goan iron ore was an
attractive buy for the global market and the spin-offs benefited those in the
port, transporters and barge owners etc. The primary beneficiary of this was,
of course, the mining lease holder, a private entity, and the price was paid by
the average Goan who had to suffer a polluted environment and witness the
damage to the State‟s ecology.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 56 of 101
80. If the issues mentioned in the Mineral Policy are objectively
considered in strict monetary terms, the only conclusion that can be drawn is
that the extraction of iron ore was for commercial purposes and maximizing
the revenues of private entrepreneurs and not necessarily the State of Goa.
The natural resource was exploited by some mining lease holders for making
profits and nothing else. There were some collateral beneficiaries as well,
and they too were commercially driven entities such as barge owners, truck
owners etc. Under these circumstances, the question that arises is whether
the mining lease holders should have been given a second renewal of the
mining lease virtually for a song, that is, payment only of royalty, when they
were driven only by a profit motive or whether the mining leases ought to
have been auctioned? Unfortunately, the Mineral Policy did not advert to or
even consider any solution that would break from the past.
81. As far as the environment, the fragile ecology of Goa and the wellbeing
of the average Goan and the rule of law is concerned, the Mineral
Policy categorically states that the State had witnessed, from 2006-07 till
2011-12 the peak of chaotic and unregulated mining without any concern for
the fragile ecology and environment of the State or for the general wellbeing
of an average Goan. Surely, all this cannot be ignored or brushed
aside particularly since the exploitation of mineral resources for five years
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 57 of 101
had no element of social or public purpose, no concern for society and no
regard for the environment and the laws.
(ii) Vishwanath Anand Expert Appraisal Committee
82. A reading of the report of the EAC is disturbing and acutely highlights
the damage to the environment and ecology by the mining lease holders. The
complete indifference by all concerned is evident from a careful reading of
the report. We propose to refer to and quote in extenso the „summary of
observations‟ and the „concluding remarks‟ from the report of the EAC since
they are self explanatory:
“Summary of Observations
I. The absence of specific conditions highlighting the mandatory
requirement to obtain prior approval of the Standing Committee of
the NBWL [National Board for Wild Life] in the EC [Environmental
Clearance] has led to misinterpretation of the legal requirement.
There has been an inordinate delay of more than 5 years before
effective action against defaulting units were initiated by the
Ministry for non-compliance of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court order
dated 04.12.2006.
II. Out of 137 ECs, the requirement of obtaining approval of the
Standing Committee of the NBWL under the W.L. (P) Act 1972
[Wild Life (Protection) Act] has not been complied with in 123 cases
where the distances are less than 10 km from the nearest PA
[Protected Area].
III. In respect of 10 cases approval of the Standing Committee of the
NBWL is not mandatory as the mine leases are located beyond 10
km from nearest PA.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 58 of 101
IV. Contrary to the directions of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court dated
04.08.2006 in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 202/1995; ECs have been
accorded to 41 mines located within 1 km from the nearest PA.
V. In respect of 20 cases mine leases were renewed under MMDR Act,
1957 prior to grant of FCs [Forest Clearance].
VI. In 29 cases, project proponents have furnished wrong information
about distance from the nearest PAs.
VII. Non-compliance of various EC conditions such as excess
production/unauthorized dump mining/drawal of ground water
without prior approval of CGWB/encroachment; have also been
reported in respect of working mines.
Concluding Remarks
A reading of our observations and recommendations would show
that without exception, every proponent to whom an
environment clearance was issued has either violated its
conditions or has furnished information in the application which
has been distant from the truth. There are basically two types of
violations; one that cannot be legally condoned and those that can be
rectified with remedial measures. This is the reason why the
committee has recommended that all ECs for mines located within
one km from PAs should be revoked and in cases where untruthful
information was furnished in the application for EC, such mines
should not be allowed to reopen. In the case of those mines which
have been closed for more than five years, their reopening has not
been recommended without their applying de novo for a fresh
environmental clearance as micro environmental conditions on the
ground would have changed during the period they remained closed.
However, when one looks at the manner in which the directives
dated 04.08.2006 and 04.12.2006 of the Supreme Court have been
implemented one cannot help but feel that there is the absence of a
bridge mechanism within the Ministry to ensure and oversee that
directives of the Courts are complied with due diligence and
seriousness.
There are two factors which stand out; in some ECs as mentioned in
this report, the condition was inserted that the project proponent
should seek approval of the CWLW [Chief Wild Life Warden], in
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 59 of 101
others it was stated that approval of the Competent
Authority/Standing Committee of the NBWL should be obtained and
in a third category no condition at all was imposed, even though
some of these ECs pertain to the same meeting and timelines
between 2005 and 2007. It is strange that concerned officials in the
MOEF were not aware that other than the Standing Committee of the
NBWL no other person was authorised to grant the permission
envisaged by the order dated 04.12.2006 of the Supreme Court. This
is not to state that any discrepancy in the EC letter would absolve the
project proponent from complying with the law of the land. This has
resulted in creating ambiguity amongst many of the project
proponents and it was not until 01.01.2009, that the MOEF issued a
public notice clarifying the position.
Considering that some of the project proponents may have been
misguided by the ambivalence of the MOEF in not clearly
delineating the legal position, it is suggested that in the case of those
project proponents who did not conceal facts in their applications but
did not apply for permission to the Standing Committee of the
NBWL, their applications may be considered for being placed before
the Standing Committee of the NBWL. However this can in no way
be construed as a justification on the part of the project proponents
for not complying with the requirements of the law. It must be noted
for example that in those cases where mining has intersected the
ground water, approval of the CGWB [Central Ground Water Board]
had not been taken by the project proponents as was required by the
EC. Similarly, there are cases where mining operations have taken
place without obtaining a FC.
…….
As regards violations of the conditions of the ECs and where
environmental damage has been caused, the concerned proponents
should be made accountable and the MOEF should examine as to
how some monetary damages can be levied through due legal
process based on the Polluter Must Pay principle, the proceeds of
which could be used for environmental rehabilitation.
There are concerns about the carrying capacity of the area with
regard to its ability to sustain the extent and quantum of mining that
has taken place there. It is recommended that a carrying capacity
study should be commissioned for the area, or if another study by a
nationally recognised institution is coming to fruition the result of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 60 of 101
that should be acted upon. Such a study should also take into account
the impact of mining on the hydrology of the region and the extent
of pollution caused to surface and ground water. This study should
be compared to the earlier 10 years baseline data to determine the
impact of mining on the biodiversity and hydrology of the area in the
last decade. Based on the finding of this, a specific policy for
mining of iron ore in the region may be developed. Such a policy
along with a proper control and monitoring mechanism is necessary
in order to avoid a situation such as the one under question. It would
hopefully also ensure that mining in this region is carried out in
accordance with best sectoral practices using appropriately clean
technologies.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
83. The report of the EAC reveals that there is not a single environment
related or mining related law or legal requirement that was not violated by
one or the other mining lease holder. Quite clearly, the rule of
environmental law in Goa had gone with the wind.
84. There was one extremely important requirement relating to extraction
of groundwater – that is clearance from the Central Ground Water Board -
but even that was ignored. During the course of submissions, we were
informed that there is plenty of groundwater available in Goa. However,
what seems to have been overlooked is that with the intersection of
groundwater levels with mining operations, the groundwater would get
depleted much faster than expected or the quality of the groundwater would
deteriorate. It is for this reason that MoEF insisted that clearance for drawal
of groundwater must be taken from the Central Ground Water Board and
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 61 of 101
care taken in respect of the intersection of groundwater level with mining
operations (this happened in 46 cases). Unfortunately, no heed was paid to
these requirements by the State of Goa or any of the mining lease holders
and not one mining least holder has any clearance (where required) from the
Central Ground Water Board, or at least none was brought to our notice.
(iii) Decision of the Bombay High Court
85. The High Court essentially created two classes of applicants for the
grant of a mining lease – those in whose favour an in-principle decision had
been taken for a second renewal of the mining lease and who had paid the
necessary stamp duty in terms of the Government order of 21st February,
2013 and those who had not yet paid the requisite stamp duty.
86. As regards the first category, the High Court directed execution of the
mining lease in their favour in accordance with the provisions of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act. This was on the belief that the applicants had
applied for the second renewal within the prescribed time period; the Indian
Bureau of Mines had approved the mining plans of these applicants; the
Indian Bureau of Mines was subjectively satisfied that the second renewal
was in the interest of mineral development; and that in view of the principles
of promissory estoppel these applicants were entitled to a second renewal of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 62 of 101
their mining lease since they had altered their position to their detriment by
paying the stamp duty demanded.
87. As regards the second category (those who had not paid the stamp
duty), the High Court directed the State of Goa to decide their second
renewal application within a period of three months keeping in mind the
provisions of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act (and the requirement to pay the
stamp duty).
88. The decision of the High Court does not at all discuss the options
available to the State of Goa, namely, second renewal of the mining leases
versus auction of a natural resource. In fact it appears that the High Court
was not at all alive to the possibility of an auction of the mining leases,
notwithstanding the view canvassed by the learned Advocate General of the
State of Goa.
(iv) Goa Grant of Mining Leases Policy 2014
89. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy announced and issued on 4th
November, 2014 is perhaps the most important document in the entire
scheme of things and that is the reason it was read out extensively by the
learned Additional Solicitor General and that is why we have chosen to
quote it extensively.
90. A consideration of the contemporaneous facts beginning with the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 63 of 101
Budget Speech given by the Hon‟ble Minister of Finance of the Government
of India on 10th July, 2014 makes it clear that an amendment to the MMDR
Act was to be effected sooner than later. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy
overlooks that and proceeds on the basis that the judgment of the High Court
delivered on 13th August, 2014 left the Government of Goa with no choice
but to abandon the grant of mining leases through competitive bidding, even
though that might be the most appropriate method of obtaining the best
revenue for the public good. The Government of Goa had therefore “for the
present” ruled out the process of going in for competitive bidding keeping
also in mind that the State was virtually starved of funds and had to balance
the equities and needs of all, including the labour class, working class and
other staff, markets in mining localities, public sector, mining lease holders,
welfare needs of the State, environment and fragile ecology of the State and
general well-being of the average Goan.
91. The State of Goa was also alive to the fact that many (if not all)
mining lease holders had violated the terms of the mining lease or some
statutory obligation. Therefore, it was decided to categorize the offenders as
follows:
Category I – will be those Mining Leases which have no violations
or very minimal violation of any provision / condition of applicable
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 64 of 101
laws/rules orders/permissions etc. or those which cannot otherwise
be referred to as „violations‟.
Category II – are those Mining Leases which have been found to
have violated the Provisions of the Mineral Concession Rules
including Rules 37 and 38 and other matters as mentioned in the
Public Accounts Committee Report/Justice Shah Commission
Report. In this category, the State Government will consider each of
the cases on its own merits; and wherever the violations are noticed
subject to the same being remedied by paying appropriate
Penalty/Fines including those of forfeiture, the State Government
shall pass appropriate Orders in accordance with Law.
Category III – Mining leases will be those which are found to have
violated substantially any provision / condition of applicable laws /
rules/orders/permissions etc., and in which cases the State
Government shall determine the Lease/reject their „Application for
the Second Renewal‟.
92. The offences ranged, amongst others, from illegal sale of ore, sale of
royalty challan without ore, encroachment of adjoining areas outside the
lease, over production in excess of the limit specified in the environmental
clearance, unscientific mining operations, violations with respect to payment
of royalty amount, re-use of old royalty challans for defrauding, illegal
mining activities etc. etc. None of these are „minimal‟ violations. However,
and this is important, the Grant of Mining Leases Policy made it clear that
the following shall not be considered for renewal of mining leases: (i) Those
facing an inquiry initiated pursuant to the orders of this Court in paragraph
88.2 of Goa Foundation for the violation of Rules 37 and 38 of the Mineral
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 65 of 101
Concession Rules, 1960; (ii) Those indicted by the Justice M.B. Shah
Commission; and (iii) Those indicted by the Public Accounts Committee.
The Grant of Mining Leases Policy stated that inquiries are already in
progress “at various levels and foras” including a Special Investigation
Team and a team of Chartered Accountants. We dare say that violations
pointed out by the EAC ought also to have been taken into consideration.
93. Be that as it may, there is no doubt that iron ore mining in Goa was
solely for commercial purposes – it was extracted primarily for export to
China and Japan without any value addition to the domestic industry. True
this brought in considerable foreign exchange – nevertheless iron ore
extraction gave insignificant value addition (if at all) to Indian industry. The
only advantage that iron ore extraction gave to the State was in terms of
royalty, but the larger benefit accrued to the private mining lease holder who
could obtain a mining lease on renewal virtually free and without any social
or welfare purpose. In other words, the State sacrificed maximizing revenue
for no apparent positive reason, virtually surrendering itself to the
commercial and profit making motives of private entrepreneurs and ignoring
the interests of Goan society in general. Therefore, in principle, the decision
of the State of Goa to not auction the grant of mining leases was flawed in
that it did not serve the common or public or social good but primarily
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 66 of 101
assisted in filling the coffers of private entrepreneurs. We are not inclined to
go so far as to describe the decision as arbitrary since it is not necessary to
do so.
94. However, we make it clear that we have dealt with this issue because
it was canvassed before us. We are not inclined to quash the decision of the
State of Goa of not going in for competitive bidding for the grant of fresh
mining leases since it is not necessary in view of our conclusion that fresh
mining leases were required to be granted by the State of Goa.
95. At this stage we must refer to a submission made by Mr. C.U. Singh
learned counsel appearing for some of the mining lease holders. He
submitted that prior to 12th January, 2015 the MMDR Act did not permit the
auction of mining leases. Therefore, even if the State of Goa was desirous of
introducing competitive bidding for grant of fresh mining leases it could not
have done so. He drew our attention to Section 11 of the MMDR Act (as it
stood prior to its amendment in 2015) which provided a preferential right for
obtaining a prospecting license or mining lease to the holder of a
reconnaissance permit or prospecting license. He submitted, placing reliance
on Sandur Manganese and Iron Ores Limited v. State of Karnataka26 that
since the MMDR Act is a complete code in itself, the method or procedure
26 (2010) 13 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 67 of 101
for grant of a lease cannot travel outside the confines of the statute and the
Mineral Concession Rules, 1960 framed thereunder. Reference was made to
paragraphs 40 to 43 of the judgment:
“In view of the specific parliamentary declaration as discussed and
explained by this Court in various decisions, there is no question of
the State having any power to frame a policy dehors the MMDR Act
and the Rules.
In State of Assam v. Om Prakash Mehta27 this Court in SCC para 12
held that the MMDR Act, 1957 and the MC Rules, 1960 contain a
complete code in respect of the grant and renewal of prospecting
licences as well as mining leases in lands belonging to the
Government as well as lands belonging to private persons.
Again this Court in Quarry Owners' Assn. v. State of Bihar28 held
that both the Central and the State Government act as mere delegates
of Parliament while exercising powers under the MMDR Act and the
MC Rules.
It is not open to the State Government to justify grant based on
criteria that are dehors the MMDR Act and the MC Rules. The
exercise has to be done strictly in accordance with the statutory
provisions and if there is any deviation, the same cannot be
sustained. It is the normal rule of construction that when a statute
vests certain power in an authority to be exercised in a particular
manner then the said authority has to exercise it only in the manner
provided in the statute itself. This principle has been reiterated
in CIT v. Anjum M.H. Ghaswala29 SCC at p.644; Captain Sube
Singh v. Lt. Governor of Delhi30 and State of U.P. v. Singhara
Singh.
31” [Emphasis supplied by us].
27 (1973) 1 SCC 584
28 (2000) 8 SCC 655
29 (2002) 1 SCC 633
30 (2004) 6 SCC 440
31 (1964) 4 SCR 485
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 68 of 101
Reference may also be made to paragraph 44 of the Report that reads
thus:
“Mr. Harish N. Salve and Mr. Dushyant Dave, by drawing our
attention to the decision of this Court in TISCO Ltd. v. Union of
India [(1996) 9 SCC 709] , submitted that inasmuch as this Court
had upheld the grants based on “captive consumption”, there is no
flaw or error in the recommendation of the State Government dated
6-12-2004. A perusal of the above decision clearly shows that it
concerned with Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act which requires
consideration of the extremely general criterion of the interests of
mineral development before granting second renewal of a mining
lease. Unlike in Section 11(3), no further criteria were specified and
it was in this background, this Court upheld on the facts of that case
that relevant material taken into account by the Committee set up by
the Central Government rightly included “captive consumption”. In
view of the factual situation, the said decision can have no bearing
on initial grants of mining lease where the only permissible criteria
are the matters set out in Section 11(3) of the MMDR Act.”
96. The controversy in Sandur Manganese related to the grant of mining
leases contrary to the provisions of Section 11 of the MMDR Act in that a
non-statutory criterion was taken into consideration de hors Section 11 of
the MMDR Act for evaluating the applications and seeking approval of the
Central Government for granting a mining lease. This was held to be
impermissible and it may be so. In any event, paragraph 44 of the Report
makes it clear that there is a distinction between the requirements of Section
11(3) of the MMDR Act and Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act. Sandur
Manganese is not applicable to the facts of the present case.
97. Similarly, reference was made to the Statement of Objects and
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 69 of 101
Reasons for the Bill introduced in 2015 to amend the MMDR Act. It was
stated therein that “The present legal framework of the MMDR Act, 1957,
does not permit the auctioning of mineral concessions.”
98. This submission need not detain us since we are not required to
adjudicate whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining leases
or not. The State of Goa decided to renew the mining leases and we are only
called upon to decide (i) Whether the policy decision not to auction the grant
of mining leases was arbitrary (we have already held that we are not required
to express a final opinion on this). We may, however, recall en passant that
the Goa Grant of Mining Leases Policy proceeded on the basis that the
auction of mining leases was permissible and that had the sanction of the
Court in Goa Foundation. It may be added that the MMDR Act did not
prohibit the auction of mining leases. (ii) Whether the second renewals were
in accordance with law and the constitutional principles.
99. We may also note that the Constitution Bench in Natural Resources
Allocation referred to the submission that if auction were the only method of
allocating natural resources (as it appears from CPIL) then the mandate
would create a conflict with some statutes including the MMDR Act. The
Constitution Bench dealt with this submission in paragraph 83 of the Report
by observing:
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 70 of 101
“Moreover, if the judgment in 2G case32 is to be read as holding
auction as the only permissible means of disposal of all natural
resources, it would lead to the quashing of a large number of laws
that prescribe methods other than auction e.g. the MMDR Act.”
However, the Constitution Bench did not advert to the consequence vis-à-vis
the MMDR Act of holding that auction was not mandated as the only
method of allocating a natural resource. Since the question does not arise in
these cases, we decline to go into this issue – we need not finally adjudicate
whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining leases but we are
called upon to decide whether the grant of second renewals was valid in law.
Judicial review of renewals
100. In view of decisions of this Court, including in Natural Resources
Allocation it is permissible for this Court to judicially review, to a limited
and restricted extent, the Grant of Mining Leases Policy, among other
things, if it falls foul of Article 14 read with Article 39(b) of the Constitution
and if it ignores the common or public or social good but benefits private
entrepreneurs, particularly when it involves the natural resources, by
sacrificing the maximization of revenue for the State.
101. In Natural Resources Allocation the Constitution Bench observed
that “Alienation of natural resources is a policy decision, and the means
32 (2012) 3 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 71 of 101
adopted for the same are thus, executive prerogatives. However, when such
a policy decision is not backed by a social or welfare purpose, and precious
and scarce natural resources are alienated for commercial pursuits of profit
maximising private entrepreneurs, adoption of means other than those that
are competitive and maximise revenue may be arbitrary and face the wrath
of Article 14 of the Constitution.”
102. Similarly in Goa Foundation this Court declared that “It is for the
State Government to decide as a matter of policy in what manner mining
leases are to be granted in future but the constitutionality or legality of the
decision of the State Government can be examined by the Court in exercise
of its power of judicial review.”
103. Despite the dicta of the Constitution Bench and the declaration made
by this Court in Goa Foundation we do not propose to judicially review the
Grant of Mining Leases Policy but to consider on merits whether the grant of
second renewal to the mining leases was in accordance with the Grant of
Mining Leases Policy and the law.
104. In our opinion, in renewing the mining leases, the State of Goa
completely ignored several relevant and important and significant factors
giving the impression that the renewals were not quite fair or reasonable.
105. For one, the State ignored the fact that every single mining lease
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 72 of 101
holder had committed some illegality or the other in varying degrees. To
identify these illegalities (although they had already been identified by the
Justice Shah Commission and by the EAC), a Special Investigation Team
had been set up as also a team of Chartered Accountants. Instead of waiting
for a report from any one of these teams, the State acted in violation of the
Grant of Mining Leases Policy and renewed the mining leases. Why was the
report from the Special Investigation Team not awaited or called for and
examined? In the Grant of Mining Leases Policy it was clearly and explicitly
stated (as mentioned above) as follows:
“Unless and until the Inquiry initiated pursuant to the Judgment and
Order of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court of India against those Mine
Lease Holders found to be violating either Rule 37 or Rule 38 of the
Mineral Concession Rules, 1960, or otherwise indicated in the
Report of the Justice Shah Commission/PAC report or found to be
engaged in, any kind of illegality of whatsoever nature such as
illegal Sale of Ore, Sale of Royalty Challan without Ore,
Encroachment of adjoining areas outside the lease over production in
excess of the limit specified in the Environmental Clearance; those
which have undertaken unscientific mining operations; those who
have violated or have not paid the Royalty amount; those who have
re-used old Royalty Challans for defrauding; and those involved in
Illegal Mining Activities shall not be considered for renewal of
the Mining Leases.
For this purpose, presently the inquiries are in progress at various
levels and foras including the investigation by the SIT Team, by the
Team of Chartered Accountants which have been set up by the State
Government and after the inquiry is complete or during the
course of the inquiry where it is found that any violations have
taken place, such persons shall not be considered for
Grant/Renewal of the Leases.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 73 of 101
106. Unfortunately, the undue haste in which the State acted gives the
impression that it was willing to sacrifice the rule of law for the benefit of
the mining lease holders and the explanation of satisfying the needs of some
sections of society for their livelihood (after keeping them in the lurch for
more than two years) was a mere fig leaf. The real intention of the second
renewal was to satisfy the avariciousness of the mining lease holders who
were motivated by profits to be made through the exploitation of natural
resources.
107. The undue haste also needs to be looked at in the context of the
statement made in the final paragraph of the Grant of Mining Leases Policy
to the effect that this Policy is an in-principle decision and would be notified
after it is vetted for legal requirements “from specific necessities as also
from financial view points”. In other words, the Grant of Mining Leases
Policy as published on 4th November, 2014 was not a final policy statement
but only an intent that would take final shape after due vetting. The Grant of
Mining Leases Policy was eventually published on 20th January, 2015 but it
was acted upon even before it was gazetted.
108. A partial explanation for this hurry, if we may venture to suggest, is
that the State of Goa was aware (like everybody else) on 17th November,
2014 if not earlier, of the policy of the Government of India to auction the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 74 of 101
grant of mining leases which policy was made available in the public
domain on that date and suggestions invited. It is on 17th November, 2014
that the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2014
was published on the website of the Ministry of Mines of the Government of
India. The policy of the Government of India proposed to introduce Section
10B by way of an amendment to the MMDR Act and the proposed
amendment made it very clear that if it were to be accepted, auction of
mining leases in respect of notified minerals (including iron ore) would
become a reality if not an obligation. It appears that to circumvent this rather
uncomfortable policy, the State pressed the accelerator on the renewal of
mining leases from December 2014 onward to benefit mining lease holders.
So much so that in respect of 5 mining leases, the State overstepped the law
and granted a second renewal in early January 2015 to some entities without
even waiting for any approval or deemed approval of the mining plan from
the Indian Bureau of Mines or any other authority.
109. This sequence of events acquires further significance when it is
recalled that an Ordinance to amend the MMDR Act was made known to the
general public on 5th January, 2015 and promulgated by the President on 12th
January, 2015 thereby mandating competitive bidding or auction for the
grant of mining leases. The State of Goa perhaps anticipated this in view of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 75 of 101
the publication of the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Act, 2014 and therefore hurried into the second renewal of
mining leases (notwithstanding the Grant of Mining Leases Policy) to defeat
the introduction of the auction process. In fact in the period from 5th January,
2015 to 12th January, 2015 the Government of Goa granted a second renewal
to as many as 56 mining leases and from 17th November, 2014 the State of
Goa granted a second renewal to as many as 75 mining leases. The sudden
spurt of renewal of mining leases is beyond comprehension. The judgment
and order of the High Court in Lithoferro cannot be used as a shield for
explaining the haste.
110. These facts must also be appreciated in the context that mining
operations were suspended in Goa with effect from 10th September, 2012
due to an order passed by the State of Goa. Therefore, mining operations
having been suspended for more than two years, the State could have
certainly waited for a few weeks more and taken an informed and reasoned
decision on granting a second renewal to mining leases – but waiting for a
few weeks could have led to an uncomfortable situation that would have
compelled the State of Goa to auction the mining leases, hence the haste.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 76 of 101
111. This Court held in Tata Iron & Steel Co. Ltd. v. Union of India33 that
for the purposes of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act34 the concept of „mineral
development‟ encompasses the concept of captive mining, an assessment of
its requirement by different industries as well as the principle of equitable
distribution (under Article 39(b) of the Constitution). It is not at all clear
from the records before us that the State had applied its mind to these and
other factors including the report of Justice Shah, the report of the EAC, the
absence of any value addition to the domestic industry and the degradation
of the environment as noted by the Expert Committee appointed by this
Court in concluding that a second renewal was „in the interests of mineral
development‟. Mere reliance on the acceptance or deemed acceptance of the
Indian Bureau of Mines is not enough, as imagined by the State of Goa. The
matter of „interests of mineral development‟ has to be considered holistically
and not in an isolationist manner.
33 (1996) 9 SCC 709
34 “8. Periods for which mining leases may be granted or renewed.- (1) The maximum period for which a mining
lease may be granted shall not exceed thirty years:
Provided that the minimum period for which any such mining lease may be granted shall not be less than twenty
years.
(2) A mining lease may be renewed for a period not exceeding twenty years.
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (2), if the State Government is of opinion that in the
interests of mineral development it is necessary so to do, it may, for reasons to be recorded, authorise the renewal
of a mining lease in respect of minerals not specified in Part A and Part B of the First Schedule for a further period
or periods not exceeding twenty years in each case.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (2) and sub-section (3), no mining lease granted in respect
of mineral specified in Part A or Part B of the First Schedule shall be renewed except with the previous approval of
the Central Government.”
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 77 of 101
112. In this context, it is also necessary to point out that the National
Mineral Policy 2008 provided that: “To maximise gains from the
comparative advantage which the country enjoys intra se mineral
development will be prioritised in terms of import substitution, value
addition and export, in that order.” Admittedly, iron ore is not extracted in
Goa for import substitution, or value addition for domestic industry, but only
for the last option, that is, export. Can it reasonably be said that the export
of iron ore is in the interest of mineral development? We were informed that
only one of the mining lease holders captively consumes the extracted iron
ore and it is evident from the Mineral Policy that despite mining operations
having closed down for some period in other States, iron ore from Goa was
not used in the domestic steel industry. Therefore, it is not at all clear who,
other than the mining lease holders making exports, was benefited by
resumption of mining operations in Goa through a second renewal.
113. The Mineral Policy clearly suggests that for a period of five years
between 2006 and 2012 the mining lease holders committed various
illegalities and irregularities in the mining process. This is an indication of
their exploitative and rapacious attitude having little or no concern for the
environment, the fragile ecology of Goa or even the health and well-being of
the average Goan. This irreparable damage was being caused by the mining
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 78 of 101
lease holders without any benefit to the domestic industry. Therefore, while
the mining lease holders may have contributed virtually nothing to the
domestic industry, they might have made considerable profits through
exports and might have also benefited the foreign exchange reserves of the
country, but the real-time damage to the quality of health and life of the
average Goan and damage to the environment and ecology of Goa is
nevertheless incalculable or at least considerable – and export benefits
cannot be weighed against health or the environment.
114. What is unfortunate about the entire commercial activity of the mining
lease holders is that there was no social or public purpose attached to the
mining operations. There was one and only one objective behind the mining
activity and that was profit maximization. The renewal of the mining leases
would give considerable profits to the mining lease holders well beyond the
benefits that could accrue to the State or to the average resident of Goa. It
was observed by Justice Khehar in Natural Resources Allocation that
material resources of the country should not be dissipated free of cost or at a
consideration lower than their actual worth. This was not kept in mind and
mining leases were renewed for a small payment of stamp duty and royalty.
It is therefore clear that the considerations that weighed with the State were
not for the people of Goa but were for the mining lease holders. This
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 79 of 101
certainly cannot be described as being “in the interests of mineral
development.”
115. With the mining lease holders violating virtually every applicable law
or legal requirement, it is clear that the rule of law was not their concern.
The list of violations and their variety was documented by the EAC and it
makes for some very sad reading. To make matters worse, it was clearly
mentioned in the Grant of Mining Leases Policy that a Special Investigating
Team and a team of Chartered Accountants would look into all the
violations but the State chose not to wait for any of the reports. There is no
explanation for this.
116. In this background, there is little to suggest that the State considered
the requirements of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act in that the interests of
mineral development was secondary while granting the second renewal of
mining leases. The entire exercise undertaken by the State was a hasty
charade, regardless of violations of the law by the mining lease holders,
without any benefit to the Indian industry and without any concern for the
health of the average Goan.
117. The undue haste with which the State granted the second renewal of
mining leases particularly after the amendments proposed to the MMDR Act
were placed in the public domain by the Government of India (relating to the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 80 of 101
auction of mining leases) is a clear indication that the decision of the State
was not based on relevant material and not necessarily triggered by the
interests of mineral development. The very large number of renewals
granted over a comparatively brief period is a clear indication that the State
did not have „mineral development‟ in mind but had some other nonstatutory
interests while taking its decision to grant a second renewal to the
mining leases. The haste with which the State took its decision also needs to
be understood in the background of the fact that mining had been suspended
by the State in September 2012 that is more than two years prior to the grant
of second renewals. The urgency suddenly exhibited by the State therefore
seems to be make-believe and motivated rather than genuine.
118. Facts from the record also disclose some interesting information
regarding the second renewal of mining leases. The table below indicates
that except 13 mining leases, all the others were renewed after publication of
the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2014 on
17th November, 2014. The table is given below and is self explanatory:
Period Mining leases renewed
Between 5-17 November, 2014 13
Between 10 December, 2014 and 2 January,
2015
19
Between 5-12 January, 2015 56
Total 88
On 12 January, 2015 31
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 81 of 101
119. Of the 13 mining leases renewed in November 2014, it is found that
according to the State of Goa all of them are Category-I violators (except
Geetabala M.N. Parulekar who is a Category–II violator). However, it was
pointed out by learned counsel appearing on behalf of Goa Foundation that
the report of the Vishwanath Anand EAC indicates that a recommendation
was made to revoke the environmental clearance in respect of 6 mining
lease holders; additionally, none of the mining lease holders had approval
from the National Board for Wildlife (where required); all of them (except
2) had mined in excess of the permissible limit under the environmental
clearance; all of them had indulged in dump mining; some of them were
guilty of encroachments; in almost every case the mining activity intersected
ground water level and none of the mining lease holders had permission for
ground water withdrawal. These cannot be described as minor violations but
were actually multiple violations in almost all cases. How could the State
of Goa and MoEF overlook these recommendations and multiple violations?
120. It may be recalled that the Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 came into force on 12th January,
2015 and on that day as many as 31 mining leases were renewed. In respect
of 5 mining leases renewed in January, 2015 the report from the Indian
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 82 of 101
Bureau of Mines was called for in January, 2015 itself and the mining leases
were renewed without receipt of the report from the Indian Bureau of Mines
and before expiry of the mandatory period for submitting the report in terms
of the second proviso to Rule 24A(3) of the Mineral Concession Rules,
1960. In other words, without even receipt of any report from the Indian
Bureau of Mines and even before the expiry of the statutory waiting period,
the State of Goa renewed some mining leases. This is patently illegal.
121. We were informed by the learned Additional Solicitor General that of
the 88 mining leases that were renewed, 38 of them are not working for a
variety of reasons – making their renewal an empty exercise.
122. These facts are mentioned in the context of the undue haste shown by
the State of Goa in granting a second renewal to the mining leases keeping
the following dates in mind:
17th November, 2014 – The draft Mines and Minerals (Development
and Regulation) Act, 2014 was uploaded on the website of the
Ministry of Mines of the Government of India.
5
th January, 2015 – Approval of the Mines and Minerals
(Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 by the
Cabinet of the Government of India became public knowledge.
12th January, 2015 – President of India promulgated the Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance,
2015.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 83 of 101
123. It is possible that the State did have some serious governance issues to
contend with as mentioned in the Grant of Mining Leases Policy, namely,
since iron ore mining had been suspended for more than two years, the State
faced a lack of funds resulting in its having difficulty in undertaking
infrastructure projects and other activities. The State had also to contend
with the adverse effects faced by a large population that was directly or
indirectly dependent on the mining sector. Additionally, the transport sector
was affected as well as barges used for transport through rivers from jetties.
The stoppage of mining operations therefore affected several categories of
stakeholders including small business or small commercial ventures and
workers/labour. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy also noted that there
was a tremendous loss of foreign exchange of about $8 billion through
exports and more than Rs. 850 crores towards loans/advances on the mining
sector for a variety of activities as well as about Rs. 1000 crores towards
housing, business and other loans. Over all there was a slump in economic
activity which also had an impact on the education sector etc.
124. The State has projected virtual chaos (which could be an
exaggeration) but that is why we have left open the issue of arbitrariness of
the policy decision. Nevertheless the State is bound by the law, however
uncomfortable it might be in granting a second renewal in terms of Section
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 84 of 101
8(3) of the MMDR Act. Therefore, on an overall consideration of all aspects
of the case, we are of opinion that the decision of the State of Goa to quickly
renew the mining leases while ostensibly complying with the requirements
of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act and thereby jettisoning the rule of law
was unjustified.
Whether fresh environmental clearances were required to be obtained
by the mining lease holders?
125. The question whether the mining lease holders required fresh
environmental clearances arises in the context of paragraph 82 of the
decision rendered in Goa Foundation quoted above. It must be stated that
some mining lease holders had environmental clearances under EIA 1994
while others under EIA 2006. Notwithstanding this, since we have held that
fresh mining leases were required to be granted, it follows that fresh
environmental clearance is required to be obtained by those who are granted
a fresh mining lease.
126. That apart, the materials before the Court while deciding Goa
Foundation included the report of the Justice Shah Commission, the report
of the EAC and the report of the Expert Committee constituted by the Court
by orders dated 11th November, 2013 and 18th November, 2013. On a
combined reading of the material before it, the Court took a broad view that
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 85 of 101
large-scale mining of iron ore led to several adverse impacts including those
related to the environment, ecology and health of the people of Goa and that
these illegalities and irregularities were committed by almost all (if not all)
mining lease holders as reported by the EAC. The Court also accepted the
view of the Expert Committee that the ecology of Goa was being degraded
through indiscriminate mining and placed a cap on the annual excavation of
iron ore. It was noted that mining by the lessees in Goa after 22nd November,
2007 was illegal and that mining operations were suspended by the State of
Goa on 10th September, 2012 and environmental clearances granted to the
mines were kept in abeyance by the MoEF on 14th September, 2012.
Considering all this, as well as the law laid down in Goa Foundation to the
effect that there is no automatic second renewal of a mining lease but that a
second renewal must be granted in accordance with the provisions of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act, the Court used the expression “grant fresh
environmental clearances for mining projects” in the passage referred to
above.
127. We have already adverted to the report of the EAC. As far as the
Expert Committee set up by the Court is concerned, it had furnished an
Interim Report dated 14th March, 2014 in which it noted large-scale
degradation of the environment and recommended placing an annual cap
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 86 of 101
between 20 and 27.5 million tonnes on the extraction of iron ore in Goa. The
Expert Committee noted the following (which makes for some very
depressing reading):
“The production of iron ore has jumped from 14.6 million tons in
1941 to 41.17 million tons in 2010-2011. In 1980s the production
was about 10 MT/annum. The quantum jump in iron ore
production in Goa was essentially due to steep rise in exports of
fines and other low grade ore of 42% Fe content to China. This
has led to massive negative impacts on all ecosystems leading to
enhanced air, water, and soil pollution affecting quality of life
across Goa. This is evident by three important reports i.e. (i)
Areawise Environmental Quality Management (AEQM) Plan for the
Mining belt of Goa by Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi
and Goa (1997) and it was submitted to the Directorate of Planning,
Statistics, and Evaluation, Government of Goa, (ii) Environmental
and Social Performance Indicators and Sustainability Markers in
Minerals Development Reporting Progress towards Improved
Ecosystem Health and Human Well-being, Phase III by TERI and
International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada (2006)
and (iii) the Regional Environmental Impact Study of Iron Ore
Mining in Goa region sponsored by MoEF, New Delhi (2014) by
Indian School of Mines. Besides the above three main reports, a
number of scientific research papers on the impact of iron ore
mining on the environment and ecology of diverse ecosystems were
published by scientists working at Goa University and NIO.
These reports and publications substantiate that the mining,
particularly the enhanced level of annual production
contributed to adverse impacts on the ecological systems, socioeconomics
of Goa and health of people of Goa leading to loss of
ecological integrity. This is due to enhanced levels of pollutants,
particularly RSPM and SPM, sedimentation of materials from dumps
and iron ore in rivers, estuaries and shallow depth (20 m) of sea
water, agricultural fields, high concentration of Fe and Mn in surface
waters and their bioaccumulation.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 87 of 101
128. Faced with this material evidence before it, the Court took the view in
Goa Foundation that fresh environmental clearances must be obtained.
Unfortunately however, the State of Goa was more concerned with earning
revenue rather than the health of the people of Goa or enforcing the rule of
law and therefore gave a complete go-bye to the directions of this Court and
to the concerns of the citizens of Goa and requested the MoEF to lift the
abeyance on the environmental clearances.
129. Acting on the request made by the State of Goa by letters dated 7th
January, 2015 and 5th February, 2015, the MoEF passed three orders on 20th
March, 2015. We have already adverted to the contents of the orders passed
on 20th March, 2015.
130. The first order of 20th March, 2015 is essentially a communication
documenting the variety of illegalities and irregularities committed by the
mining lease holders and that the Government of India would be referring
the cases for appropriate action and also requesting the Principal Secretary,
Environment in the Government of Goa to take necessary action.
131. The second order of 20th March, 2015 is an Office Memorandum to
the effect that a project proponent will not be required to obtain a fresh
environmental clearance at the time of renewal of the mining lease. This is
misleading information and contrary to the decision of this Court in M.C.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 88 of 101
Mehta v. Union of India35 as well as the decision rendered in Common
Cause v. Union of India.
36
132. It was held in Ambica Quarry Works v. State of Gujarat37, Rural
Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P.38 and State of M.P. v.
Krishnadas Tikaram39 (which decisions were followed in M.C. Mehta) that
the renewal of a lease, whether under the provisions of the Forest
(Conservation) Act, 1980 or otherwise cannot be granted without the lease
holder complying with the necessary statutory requirements particularly
since the grant of renewal is a fresh grant and must be consistent with law.
The principle of compliance with statutory provisions at the stage of renewal
of a lease was re-affirmed in Common Cause in paragraphs 105 and 106 of
the Report. In paragraph 188(2) of the Report it was categorically held as
follows:
“(2) The renewal of a mining lease after 27-1-1994 will require an
EC even if there is no expansion or modernisation activity or any
increase in the pollution load.”
133. The third order of 20th March, 2015 is extremely cryptic in the matter
of lifting the abeyance order of 14th September, 2012 on environmental
35 (2004)12 SCC 118
36 (2017) 9 SCC 499
37 (1987) 1 SCC 213
38 1989 Supp (1) SCC 504
39 1995 Supp (1) SCC 587
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 89 of 101
clearances. While dealing with 35 mining leases for which environmental
clearance had been granted under EIA 1994 and 37 mining leases for which
environmental clearance had been granted under EIA 2006, the following is
stated:
“It has been decided in the Ministry that the EC issued under 1994
notification in case they are valid and subsisting would not require
fresh EC at the time of renewal (O.M. L-11011/15/2012-IA-II (M)
dated 20.3.2015. Therefore it has been decided to lift abeyance on
the 72 cases of which 35 cases had been granted EC under the
provisions of EIA notification 1994 and 37 cases had been granted
EC under EIA notification 2006.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
134. As mentioned above and as held in M.C. Mehta and Common Cause,
the renewal of a lease after 27th January, 1994 would require an
environmental clearance. Therefore, a mining lease holder having a valid
environmental clearance obtained under EIA 1994 would still require a fresh
environmental clearance for renewal of the mining lease in 2014-2015 as the
case may be. That being so there is no doubt at all that the 35 cases referred
to in the third order of 20th March, 2015 who had an environmental
clearance under EIA 1994 did require a fresh environmental clearance at the
time of renewal of the mining lease. Since they did not have such a fresh
environmental clearance the renewal of these 35 mining leases is clearly
bad in law. Moreover, as held in M.C. Mehta and Common Cause the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 90 of 101
validity of an environmental clearance granted under EIA 1994 is only for
five years. Therefore all environmental clearances granted under EIA 1994
had lost their validity before 2015, EIA 1994 having been replaced by EIA
2006.
135. As regards the 37 mining leases that had obtained environmental
clearance under EIA 2006, since the validity of the environmental clearance
is for the estimated project life or a maximum of 30 years in terms of
paragraph 9 of EIA 2006 therefore no violation can be found on the ground
of validity for the time period. To this limited extent, no interference is
necessary at this stage in respect of these 37 mining leases. We make it
clear, however, that this is subject to our conclusion that fresh mining leases
were required to be granted by the State of Goa. Consequently, a mining
lease holder obtaining a fresh mining lease would require a fresh
environmental clearance in terms of EIA 2006.
136. What is disturbing is that notwithstanding several and various
violations, the MoEF granted environmental clearance to 72 mining leases.
It seems to us that the MoEF acted without any application of mind in lifting
the order placing all the environmental clearances in abeyance. Since the
entire exercise carried out by the MoEF on 20th March, 2015 was
mechanical, at the behest of the State of Goa, without due application of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 91 of 101
mind, without considering the multiple illegalities and irregularities
committed by the mining lease holders or passing on the buck to the State of
Goa and without considering relevant material such as the report of the EAC
and the Expert Committee appointed by this Court, the exercise of lifting the
abeyance order on 20th March, 2015 by the MoEF must be held void and as
directed by the Court in Goa Foundation all the mining lease holders must
obtain fresh environmental clearance for their mining project.
137. We were informed by the learned Additional Solicitor General that
show cause notices have now been issued to some mining lease holders
demanding huge amounts - some running into hundreds of crores of rupees
towards value of ore extracted in excess of the environmental clearance.
We were handed over some sample show cause notices (about 12) issued in
September and October 2017 and the figures are quite staggering – the
demand raised being about Rs. 1500 crores! Similarly, from the Summary
of Mining Audit Report submitted by the auditors (and handed over to us by
the learned Additional Solicitor General – for the period July 2016 to
December 2016) the amount demanded (including interest) by the State of
Goa from the mining lease holders through show cause notices issued is
about Rs. 1500 crores! And without making any serious attempt to recover
such huge amounts, the State of Goa has granted second renewal of mining
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 92 of 101
leases and the MoEF played ball by lifting the abeyance order in respect of
the environment clearances. The inferences that can be drawn are quite
obvious.
138. We must emphasise that issues impacting society are required to be
looked at holistically and not in a disaggregated manner. An overall
perspective is necessary on such issues including issues that impact on the
environment and the people of a community or a region or the State. It is
for this reason that it is necessary to look at them broadly otherwise if that
broader perspective is lost everyone will be a loser and no one will be a real
beneficiary. One or two violations here and there may be wished away as
inconsequential, but multiple violations by several persons can result in
serious problems. As the novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand had said: We
can evade reality, but we cannot evade the consequences of evading reality.
Therefore, there is no doubt that the Mineral Policy, the Grant of Mining
Leases Policy, the amendment to the MMDR Act, the report of the EAC and
the report of the Expert Committee must be considered in the larger context
of constitutionalism, the rule of law, environmental jurisprudence as well as
the fundamental right of the people of Goa to have clean air and
protection of the fragile ecology. Governance cannot and should not be
carried out de hors the interests of the people and some uncomfortable
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 93 of 101
decisions may be inevitable for balancing the equities.
139. Finally, a controversy (wholly unnecessary in our view) was raised
with regard to the period of validity of the environmental clearance granted
under EIA 1994. Firstly, in the view that we have taken, the validity period
of an environmental clearance under EIA 1994 is academic since a fresh
environmental clearance was necessary at the time of renewal of a lease.
Secondly, the period of validity of an environmental clearance was
considered in M.C. Mehta and it was clearly held that it is valid for 5 years
only. In paragraph 77 of the Report it was observed:
“We are unable to accept the contention that the notification dated
27-1-1994 would not apply to leases which come up for
consideration for renewal after issue of the notification. The
notification mandates that the mining operation shall not be
undertaken in any part of India unless environmental clearance by
the Central Government has been accorded. The clearance under
the notification is valid for a period of five years. In none of the
leases the requirements of the notification were complied with either
at the stage of initial grant of the mining lease or at the stage of
renewal. Some of the leases were fresh leases granted after issue of
the notification. Some were cases of renewal. No mining operation
can commence without obtaining environmental impact assessment
in terms of the notification.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
A similar view was expressed in paragraph 87 in Common Cause. Any
contrary view expressed in any notification issued by MoEF (including the
notification of 15th January, 2016) cannot overrule decisions of this Court
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 94 of 101
and is void to the extent that it does so.
140. It was submitted that all relevant notifications on the subject had not
been placed before the Court and hence an erroneous conclusion was arrived
at with respect to EIA 1994. We propose to deal with the notifications
placed before us.
141. The notification of 27th January, 1994 (EIA 1994) deals with site
clearance in paragraph 2.II(d). This provides, inter alia, that site clearance
will be granted for a mining operation by the Central Government and that
site clearance will be valid for a period of five years for commencing the
operation or mining. Paragraphs 2.III(a) and 2.III(c) of the notification deal
with the procedure for obtaining environmental clearance, but do not provide
for the validity period of the environmental clearance.
142. A notification of 4th May, 1994 refers to the notification of 27th
January, 1994 and substitutes paragraph 2.III(c) therein and provides that the
environmental clearance “shall be valid for a period of five years from
commencement of the construction or operation.” What this provides,
therefore, is that if environmental clearance is granted on a particular date
and the mining operation starts on a later date, then the validity of the
environmental clearance commences from the later date and is valid for five
years from that date. This was reiterated in the notification of 10th April,
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 95 of 101
1997.
143. The validity of an environmental clearance is specifically provided for
in EIA 2006 in paragraph 9 thereof. As far as we are concerned, it provides
that in respect of mining operations, the environmental clearance would be
valid for the “project life as estimated by Expert Appraisal Committee or
State Level Expert Appraisal Committee subject to a maximum of thirty
years for mining projects….”.
144. For no apparent reason and after EIA 2006, the issue of the validity of
an environmental clearance granted under EIA 1994 was raked up and a
notification was issued by the MoEF on 21st August, 2013 in which it was
noted that the notification of 4th May, 1994 provided that “the clearance
granted shall be valid for a period of five years from commencement of the
construction or operation”. Another notification of 21st August, 2013 goes
on to say that the intent of the Central Government has been and has always
been that the validity of the environmental clearance is for five years “for”
commencement of the construction or operation and not that the
environment clearance is only for five years “from” the commencement of
construction or operation. Therefore, the Central Government clarified in the
notification of 21st August, 2013 that the expression “for a period of five
years” shall mean “for a period of five years for commencement of the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 96 of 101
construction or operation and not five years from commencement of the
construction or operation.” We do not see how this controversy really arises
or its relevance to the present case, but we refer to it since submissions were
made to explain the distinction between “for” five years and “from” five
years in respect of the validity of an environmental clearance.
145. It is perhaps sought to be contended that if environmental clearance is
granted and mining operations commence within the five year period, then
the environmental clearance under EIA 1994 is valid till the project or the
mining lease period is over. We cannot see how such an inference can be
drawn. Moreover, this submission overlooks the decisions in M.C. Mehta
and Common Cause which accept the view that the validity of an
environmental clearance granted under EIA 1994 is only five years as also
the view that a valid environmental clearance is necessary for the renewal of
a mining lease. No notification of the MoEF can overrule decisions of this
Court. As far as EIA 2006 is concerned this submission is academic and
not relevant since paragraph 9 of EIA 2006 provides that the environmental
clearance would be valid for the estimated project life subject to a maximum
of 30 years.
146. Learned counsel for the mining lease holders also relied upon a
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 97 of 101
decision of the Delhi High Court in S. N. Mohanty v. Union of India40 to
contend that notwithstanding a notification issued by MoEF on 4th April,
2011 it was not obligatory for a mining lease holder to obtain a fresh
environmental clearance at the time of renewal of a lease, if the
environmental clearance was subsisting. In that case, the petitioner had an
environmental clearance obtained under EIA 2006 on 15th January, 2007 and
the first renewal of the mining lease was due on 2nd April, 2012. In that
context, it was submitted that it was not necessary for the petitioner to obtain
environmental clearance for renewal of the mining lease. The Delhi High
Court took the view that: “… if a person has a valid and subsisting EC
[environmental clearance] at the point of time he seeks a renewal of the
mining lease, he would still be required to obtain another EC prior to the
grant of renewal by the respondents. That, in our view, is not the intent and
purport of the Supreme Court directions in M.C. Mehta.” This question
does not arise in the context of EIA 1994.
147. One final submission before us was that these cases be referred to a
Bench of 9 learned judges since the constitutional validity of the Goa,
Daman & Diu Mining Concessions (Abolition & Declaration of Mining
Leases) Act, 1987 was under challenge in some cases and the decision in
40 2012 SCC OnLine Del 4000
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 98 of 101
those cases would perhaps render the present proceedings infructuous. In
some of these pending cases, this Court had passed an order on 29th October,
2002 to await the decision of 9 learned judges in Property Owners’
Association v. State of Maharashtra.
41
We are not at all inclined to accept
this request and mention it only to reject it.
Correctness of the decision of the High Court in Lithoferro
148. As far as the SLPs are concerned (SLP (C) No. 32138 of 2015 and
SLP (C) Nos. 32699-32727 of 2015) we set aside the judgment and order
dated 13th August, 2014 of the High Court in view of our conclusion that the
State of Goa was required to grant fresh licences in terms of the decision of
this Court in Goa Foundation. The High Court proceeded on the erroneous
basis that it could direct the State of Goa to grant a second renewal of the
mining leases notwithstanding the direction in Goa Foundation.
Conclusions and directions
149. In view of our discussion, we arrive at the following conclusions:
1. As a result of the decision, declaration and directions of this
Court in Goa Foundation, the State of Goa was obliged to
grant fresh mining leases in accordance with law and not
second renewals to the mining lease holders.
41 (2013) 7 SCC 522 dated 20th February, 2002
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 99 of 101
2. The State of Goa was not under any constitutional obligation to
grant fresh mining leases through the process of competitive
bidding or auction.
3. The second renewal of the mining leases granted by the State of
Goa was unduly hasty, without taking all relevant material into
consideration and ignoring available relevant material and
therefore not in the interests of mineral development. The
decision was taken only to augment the revenues of the State
which is outside the purview of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act.
The second renewal of the mining leases granted by the State of
Goa is liable to be set aside and is quashed.
4. The Ministry of Environment and Forest was obliged to grant
fresh environmental clearances in respect of fresh grant of
mining leases in accordance with law and the decision of this
Court in Goa Foundation and not merely lift the abeyance
order of 14th September, 2012.
5. The decision of the Bombay High Court in Lithoferro v. State
of Goa (and batch) giving directions different from those given
by this Court in Goa Foundation is set aside.
6. The mining lease holders who have been granted the second
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 100 of 101
renewal in violation of the decision and directions of this Court
in Goa Foundation are given time to manage their affairs and
may continue their mining operations till 15th March, 2018.
However, they are directed to stop all mining operations with
effect from 16th March, 2018 until fresh mining leases (not
fresh renewals or other renewals) are granted and fresh
environmental clearances are granted.
7. The State of Goa should take all necessary steps to grant fresh
mining leases in accordance with the provisions of the Mines
and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957. The
Ministry of Environment and Forest should also take all
necessary steps to grant fresh environmental clearances to those
who are successful in obtaining fresh mining leases. The
exercise should be completed by the State of Goa and the
Ministry of Environment and Forest as early as reasonably
practicable.
8. The State of Goa will take all necessary steps to ensure that the
Special Investigation Team and the team of Chartered
Accountants constituted pursuant to the Goa Grant of Mining
Leases Policy 2014 give their report at the earliest and the State
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 101 of 101
of Goa should implement the reports at the earliest, unless there
are very good reasons for rejecting them.
9. The State of Goa will take all necessary steps to expedite
recovery of the amounts said to be due from the mining lease
holders pursuant to the show cause notices issued to them and
pursuant to other reports available with the State of Goa
including the report of Special Investigation Team and the team
of Chartered Accountants.
150. The writ petitions and SLPs are disposed of in accordance with the
above conclusions and directions.
...……………………J
(Madan B. Lokur)
..…………………....J
New Delhi; (Deepak Gupta)
February 7, 2018
REPORTABLE
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
SPECIAL LEAVE TO APPEAL (CIVIL) NO. 32138 OF 2015
The Goa Foundation …Petitioner
Versus
M/s Sesa Sterlite Ltd. & Ors. …Respondents
WITH
SLP (C) NOS. 32699-32727 OF 2015, WRIT
PETITION (C) NO. 711 OF 2015 AND WRIT
PETITION (C) NO. 720 OF 2015
J U D G M E N T
Madan B. Lokur, J
1. Rapacious and rampant exploitation of our natural resources is the
hallmark of our iron ore mining sector - coupled with a total lack of concern
for the environment and the health and well-being of the denizens in the
vicinity of the mines. The sole motive of mining lease holders seems to be
to make profits (no matter how) and the attitude seems to be that if the rule
of law is required to be put on the backburner, so be it. Unfortunately, the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 2 of 101
State is unable to firmly stop violations of the law and other illegalities,
perhaps with a view to maximize revenue, but without appreciating the long
term impact of this indifference. Another excuse generally put forth by the
State is that of development, conveniently forgetting that development must
be sustainable and equitable development and not otherwise.
2. Effective implementation and in some instances circumvention of the
mining and environment related laws is a tragedy in itself. Laxity and sheer
apathy to the rule of law gives mining lease holders a field day, being the
primary beneficiaries, with the State being left with some crumbs in the form
of royalty. For the State to generate adequate revenue through the mining
sector and yet have sustainable and equitable development, the
implementation machinery needs a tremendous amount of strengthening
while the law enforcement machinery needs strict vigilance. Unless the two
marry, we will continue to be mute witnesses to the plunder of our natural
resources and left wondering how to retrieve an irretrievable situation.
3. The Government of India appears to have received information of
large-scale illegal mining of iron ore and manganese ore in different States
in contravention of the provisions of the Mines and Minerals (Development
and Regulation) Act, 1957 (the MMDR Act), the Forest (Conservation) Act,
1980, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and other rules and guidelines
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 3 of 101
issued on the subject from time to time.
4. Acting on this information, the Government of India appointed Justice
M.B. Shah a former judge of this Court as a commission of inquiry under
Section 3 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 by a notification dated
22nd November, 2010. The terms of reference of the Commission for the
State of Goa were as follows:
2. The terms of reference of the Commission shall be -
(i) to inquire into and determine the nature and extent of
mining and trade and transportation, done illegally or without
lawful authority, of iron ore and manganese ore, and the losses
therefrom; and to identify, as far as possible, the persons, firms,
companies and others that are engaged in such mining, trade and
transportation of iron ore and manganese ore, done illegally or
without lawful authority;
(ii) to inquire into and determine the extent to which the
management, regulatory and monitoring systems have failed to
deter, prevent, detect and punish offences relating to mining,
storage, transportation, trade and export of such ore, done
illegally or without lawful authority, and the persons responsible
for the same;
(iii) to inquire into the tampering of official records, including
records relating to land and boundaries, to facilitate illegal
mining and identify, as far as possible, the persons responsible
for such tampering; and
(iv) to inquire into the overall impact of such mining, trade,
transportation and export, done illegally or without lawful
authority, in terms of destruction of forest wealth, damage to the
environment, prejudice to the livelihood and other rights of tribal
people, forest dwellers and other persons in the mined areas, and
the financial losses caused to the Central and State Governments.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 4 of 101
3. The Commission shall also recommend remedial measures to
prevent such mining, trade, transportation and export done illegally
or without lawful authority.”
5. Justice Shah visited Goa and after calling for and receiving
information from the concerned authorities as well as the mining lease
holders, he submitted a report on 15th March, 2012 and another on 25th April,
2012 to the Ministry of Mines in the Government of India. The reports were
tabled in Parliament on 7th September, 2012 along with an Action Taken
Report and as a result, the Government of Goa passed an order dated 10th
September, 2012 suspending all mining operations in the State with effect
from 11th September, 2012. The Ministry of Environment and Forests
(MoEF) of the Government of India acted similarly and kept in abeyance the
environmental clearances granted to 139 mines (actually 137 mines – there
is some duplication) in the State of Goa by an order dated 14
th September,
2012.
6. Subsequent to the reports given by Justice Shah, a writ petition was
filed by Goa Foundation in this Court being WP (C) No. 435 of 2012. The
writ petition was a public interest litigation praying, inter alia, for directions
to the Union of India and the State of Goa to take steps to terminate the
mining leases where mining was carried out in violation of various statutes.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 5 of 101
7. Similarly, several mining lease holders preferred writ petitions in the
Bombay High Court for a declaration that the reports given by Justice Shah
are illegal and also for quashing the orders dated 10th September, 2012 and
14th September, 2012 whereby mining operations were suspended and
environmental clearances were kept in abeyance. The writ petitions filed in
the High Court were transferred to this Court for hearing along with WP (C)
No. 435 of 2012.
8. This Court heard all these matters and rendered its decision in Goa
Foundation v. Union of India on 21st April 2014.1 Among other
conclusions arrived at, it was held by the Court that all the iron ore and
manganese ore leases had expired on 22nd November, 2007. Consequently,
any mining operation carried out by the mining lease holders after that date
was illegal. It was also held that all the mining lease holders had enjoyed a
first deemed renewal of the mining lease and for a second renewal an
express order was required to be passed in view of and in terms of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act. For a second renewal of the mining lease, it was
held that the State Government must apply its mind and record reasons for
renewal being in the interest of mineral development and the necessity to
1
(2014) 6 SCC 590
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 6 of 101
renew the mining lease. Any decision taken by the State Government should
also be in conformity with the constitutional provisions. The decision taken
by the State of Goa to grant a mining lease in a particular manner or to a
particular party could be examined by way of judicial review. It was also
held that the orders dated 10th September, 2012 and 14th September, 2012 are
not liable to be quashed and that they would continue till decisions are taken
to grant fresh leases and fresh environmental clearances for mining projects.
Goa Mineral Policy 2013
9. During the pendency of the proceedings before the Court, the State of
Goa announced the draft Goa Mineral Policy on 21st August, 2012. After
suggestions etc. were received, the Mineral Policy was finalized and
gazetted on 28th September, 2013.
10. A few salient features of the Mineral Policy may be mentioned. It is
stated in the Preamble to the Mineral Policy: “The Goan economy is heavily
dependent on the iron ore industry insofar as the major share of the regional
income from the mineral industry and its allied activities like transport and
trade is concerned.”
“However, during the period from 2006-07 to 2011-12, due to huge
spurt in demand of low grade ore in international market followed by
illegalities and irregularities in the previous regulatory regime, the
State has witnessed the peak of chaotic and unregulated mining
without any concern for fragile ecology and environment of the State
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 7 of 101
or for the general well being of an average Goan. It has resulted in
massive export of unaccounted ore from unidentified sources like
dumps and tailings. The reckless exploitation without any concern
for sustainability that the State has witnessed in last five years has
serious implications. Minerals are a finite and non-renewable natural
resource and must be exploited wisely in the larger interest of the
State.
It is high time that the new Government that has received an
unprecedented mandate from the people of Goa should take note that
dependence on mining presents extreme externalities and the State
has to tread cautiously promoting a sustainable extraction
regime to facilitate systematic, scientific and planned utilization
of mineral resources and to streamline mineral based development
of the State, keeping in view, protection of environment, health and
safety of the people in and around the mining areas rather than race
to bottom.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
11. Notwithstanding this serious indictment of the pre-existing „policy‟
for mining natural resources in Goa, the Mineral Policy did not address itself
to the allocation or distribution of the natural resources in any of its 20
paragraphs and many sub-paragraphs. The topics dealt with in the Mineral
Policy include objectives and parameters, sustainable mining and mineral
conservation, mineral administration, regulation of mines and minerals,
pollution and its social impact, and policy highlights. Some of the other
topics dealt with in the Mineral Policy include capping, based on carrying
capacity of public roads and to protect inter-generational equity, mines
safety and rehabilitation of affected people, stakeholder participation
(including corporate social responsibility), welfare and social responsibilities
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 8 of 101
and establishment of the Goa Minerals Development Fund etc.
12. However, what is of some significance is that paragraphs 1.4.4 and
1.4.5 of the Mineral Policy state that Goan iron ore is low grade, that is
having low iron (or Fe) content and that its extraction provides no or
minimal domestic value addition. Almost all the iron ore extracted in Goa is
exported and we were informed that only one mining lease holder captively
consumes Goan extracted iron ore. Paragraphs 1.4.4 and 1.4.5 of the Mineral
Policy read as follows:
“1.4.4 No Domestic Value Addition: The nature of Goan iron ore is
such that value addition opportunities in the domestic market are
minimal. The Chinese and Japanese use Goan iron ore for blending
purposes to bring down the average cost of iron ore, whereas Indian
steel producers have a wide range of high grade fines to choose
from. Despite the closure of mining operations in the
neighbouring State of Karnataka, Goan iron ore is not used in
Indian Steel Industry due to its low Fe content.
1.4.5. Low Grade v/s High Grade: Goan iron ore has always been of
low grade Fe content in comparison with that of Odisha, Jharkhand
and Karnataka. The low grade of ore has been competitive in
global markets, because of the non reliance on railways and
close distances of mines to ports thereby reducing the overall
cost. The high silica presence in Goan ore also is a favourable factor
for preference for Goan ore over Australian and Brazilian low grade
ore.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
13. It appears from the above that the extraction of iron ore in Goa is
geared only towards export and not for domestic purposes because of the
low Fe content and high silica presence.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 9 of 101
Vishwanath Anand Expert Appraisal Committee
14. During the pendency of the writ petition in the Court, the MoEF
constituted an Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) on 21st March, 2013
with Shri Vishwanath Anand, former Secretary in the MoEF as the
Chairman to specifically look into issues related to illegal mining in the
State of Goa. The terms of reference of the EAC were as follows:
(a) To examine the information/documents submitted by each of
the 139 project proponents in response to aforesaid direction dated
14th September, 2012 under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 for
keeping environment clearance in abeyance and making case-bycase
recommendations to the MoEF;
2
(b) To evaluate status of compliance with respect to conditions
stipulated as part of environment clearance;
(c) xxx xxx xxx
(d) To examine the observations relating to MoEF in Justice Shah
Commission report on illegal mining of iron and manganese ore in
the State of Goa and make appropriate recommendations.
15. The EAC gave its report sometime in October 2013 with regard to 137
mining leases. Very briefly, the EAC found many of the mining lease
holders had: (i) No approval from the National Board of Wildlife; or (ii)
Indulged in excess mining; or (iii) Indulged in dump mining; or (iv)
Intersected groundwater level; or (v) No clearance from the Central Ground
2
Actually 137 project proponents – there is some duplication
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 10 of 101
Water Board to draw ground water; or (vi) No forest clearance. We may
also note that the EAC also recommended the revocation of environmental
clearance granted to several mining lease holders for a variety of reasons.
16. The Mineral Policy and the report of the EAC were perhaps placed
before the Court in the writ petition filed by Goa Foundation and the
transferred cases, but not dealt with, except for a brief mention of the
Mineral Policy.
17. All the cases before the Court were heard quite extensively in
September, October and November 2013. Judgment was reserved on 11th
November, 2013 and pronounced on 21st April, 2014. Some of the
conclusions arrived at by the Court relevant for our discussions have already
been mentioned above.
18. At this stage, it may be mentioned that on 11th November, 2013 read
with an order dated 18th November, 20133
this Court constituted an Expert
Committee “to conduct a macro EIA study on what should be the ceiling of
annual excavation of iron ore from the State of Goa considering its iron ore
resources and its carrying capacity keeping in mind the principles of
sustainable development and intergenerational equity and all other relevant
factors.” The members of the Expert Committee were:
3
Goa Foundation v. Union of India, (2014) 6 SCC 738 and Goa Foundation v. Union of India, WP (C) No. 435 of 2012
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 11 of 101
1. Dr. C.R. Babu (Ecologist)
2. Dr S.C. Dhiman (Geologist/Hydrogeologist)
3. Prof. B.K. Mishra (Mineralogist)
4. Prof. S. Parameswarappa (Forestry)
5. Shri Parimal Rai (nominee of the Ministry of Environment and
Forests, Government of India).
19. The Expert Committee submitted an Interim Report dated 14th March,
2014 to the Court after considering reports prepared by the Tata Energy
Research Institute (TERI), New Delhi (1997); TERI and International
Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada (2006); MoEF (2014);
research papers prepared by the Goa University and the National Institute of
Oceanography; Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines),
Dhanbad (2013); Pollution Control Board, Goa (Annual Report) and other
literature. It noted large-scale degradation of the environment in Goa due to
mining operations. A Final Report was also submitted by the Expert
Committee to the Court on or about 12th April, 2015 - it was obviously not
available to the Court.
Other proceedings in the High Court
20. Quite independent of the cases pending in this Court, writ petitions
were filed by several mining lease holders in the Bombay High Court
praying either for consideration of their application for a second renewal of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 12 of 101
the mining lease or for the grant of a mining lease on second renewal. The
High Court heard those writ petitions and delivered its judgment on 13th
August, 2014.4
In the course of its judgment, the High Court referred to the
Mineral Policy and observed:
“The State Government also framed Goa Mineral Policy, 2013,
which was duly gazetted on 28th September, 2013 and was placed on
record before the Supreme Court in Writ Petition (C) 435/2012. The
State Government, in terms of this policy, in principle, agreed to
renew 28 leases. These leaseholders were also asked to pay stamp
duty. In some cases, after payment of the stamp duty, decision under
Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act was taken to renew the leases and
that decision is also gazetted. Thus, the petitions are classified in
three categories mentioned hereinbelow:
(A)Where there is notification issued in the Official Gazette after
taking a decision for renewal;
(B) Where there is a decision for renewal and there is stamp duty
collected; and
(C) Where there are renewal applications made and are still pending.
All the petitioners initially sought directions to the State Government
to decide their applications for renewal filed in the year 2007.
However, the petitions which fell in the first two categories were
subsequently amended and directions were sought against the
Government to execute second renewal lease deeds.”
21. In its decision, the High Court held: (i) The decision of this Court [in
Goa Foundation] is not an impediment on the State of Goa in considering
the applications filed by the petitioners before the High Court for a second
renewal of the mining lease. On the contrary, the decision casts an obligation
4
Lithoferro v. State of Goa, MANU/MH/1292/2014 = 2014 SCC OnLIne Bom 997
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 13 of 101
on the Government of Goa to consider all the applications for renewal under
Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act; (ii) Consideration of the applications should
be in accordance with the Mineral Policy, the provisions of the MMDR Act
and the Rules made thereunder and in accordance with constitutional
provisions; (iii) The expression „fresh leases‟ occurring in paragraph 67 (82)
of the decision of this Court [in Goa Foundation] is an affirmation of the
law that the renewal of a lease is also a fresh grant. For arriving at this
conclusion, the High Court placed reliance on State of M.P. v. Krishnadas
Tikaram.
5
The High Court finally held:
“In the case in hand, admittedly, all the petitioners have made
applications for second renewal within the time limit i.e. before
expiry of the term of first renewal of the mining leases. The mining
plans for the second renewal, thereafter, came to be approved by the
IBM. The IBM also recorded its subjective satisfaction that the same
is in the interest of mineral development. Thus, there is enough
material on record to show that the Government agreed to grant the
second renewal of mining leases under Section 8(3) of the MMDR
Act and thereafter amended the Stamp Act and directed some of the
petitioners to pay the stamp duty and even accepted the same. Thus,
the Government gave promise that the mining leases would be
executed under Section 8(3) and pursuant to the promise, the
petitioners altered their position by depositing the huge stamp duty.
Therefore, it is now not open for the Government to resile from the
promise as it is estopped by the doctrine of promissory estoppel from
doing so. The petitioners legitimately expected that after payment of
the stamp duty, the Government would execute the second leases
under Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act. In our considered opinion, the
5
1995 Supp (1) SCC 587
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 14 of 101
principle of promissory estoppel is squarely applicable to the facts of
the present case. The Government is reluctant to execute the lease
deeds under Section 8(3) only on the ground that it is not open for it
to do so in the light of the Apex Court judgment in Writ Petition (C)
No. 435/2012. We have already held that the Supreme Court
judgment in Writ Petition (C) No. 435/2012 is not an impediment in
the Government‟s way in executing the leases in terms of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act.”
22. In view of the above conclusions, the High Court passed the following
orders:
“(I) The Respondent-State of Goa is directed to execute the lease
deeds under Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act in favour of the
petitioners/lease holders who/which have already paid the stamp
duty pursuant to the orders of the Government, in accordance with
the Goa Mineral Policy, 2013 placed before the Supreme Court in
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 435/2012 and subject to the conditions laid
down by the Apex Court in the said Writ Petition.
(II) So far as the petitioners/lease holders who/which have not paid
the stamp duty are concerned, the Respondent-State of Goa is
directed to decide their renewal applications under Section 8(3), as
expeditiously as possible, and preferably within a period of three
months from the date of receipt of copy of this order.”
23. Two petitions for special leave have been filed directed against the
judgment and order passed by the High Court on 13th August, 2014 being
SLP (C) No. 32138 of 2015 and SLP (C) Nos. 32699-32727 of 2015 and
these are also before us.
Goa Grant of Mining Leases Policy 2014
24. Keeping in mind the orders and directions passed by this Court and
the High Court, the State of Goa formulated the Goa Grant of Mining Leases
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 15 of 101
Policy 2014. We were informed by the learned Additional Solicitor General
that the Grant of Mining Leases Policy was approved by the Council of
Ministers of the Goa State Cabinet on 1st October, 2014. It was issued on 4th
November, 2014 and placed on the website of the Directorate of Mines and
Geology of the Government of Goa on the same day. However, it was
gazetted on 20th January, 2015 with two paragraphs deleted from the
document issued on 4th November, 2014. The two deleted paragraphs are
indicated below.
25. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy makes for some very important
and interesting reading and includes an impassioned plea for rejecting the
process of competitive bidding of mining leases for the time being. It also
contains the statement made by the Chief Minister on the floor of the Goa
State Legislative Assembly. While the Grant of Mining Leases Policy is a
large document, it is necessary to read relevant extracts from it since it
indicates the factors that went into taking the policy decision and also to
appreciate if there was any violation of Article 14 of the Constitution. The
relevant extracts read as under:
Background.–– In accordance with the Directions contained in the
judgment and order of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court dated 21st April,
2014 in Writ Petition (Civil) No.435 of 2012, the Hon‟ble Supreme
Court has declared that all the Mining Leases in the State of Goa
have expired on 22nd November, 2007.….
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 16 of 101
It has further been directed by the Hon‟ble Supreme Court that it is
for the State Government to decide as a matter of Policy, in what
manner Mining Leases are to be granted in the future…..
The Hon‟ble Supreme Court has in its Judgment and Order dated
21st April, 2014 clearly held that the action of allowing the mines to
be run on Deemed Extension Basis from the years 2007 to 2012 was
completely illegal and has further declared that the so-called deemed
mining leases in the State of Goa have expired in the year 2007…..
Few things emerge out of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court‟s Order. In
the first place, the mining leases have been held to have expired in
the year 2007. In the second place, the State Government has
been directed, in accordance with its policy to grant fresh leases
in the State.
With these, the options available with the State Government are as
follows:–
The State Government can directly auction the leases in order
to secure the best returns for the grant of leases by way of a
competitive bidding process,
(a) The State Government can also form a State Corporation and
undertake the mining activities through the State Mineral
Development Corporation.
(b) The State Government could also proceed to grant fresh leases,
in terms of the MMRD Act by the following the process of
preferential grant of leases to certain persons as specified in the
MMRD Act.
(c) Yet another option available to the State Government was to
decide the renewal applications which were pending since the
year 2006 and which had remained without any disposal.
Each of the aforesaid modes has its own merits and de-merits….
While the State Government was in the process of deliberating on all
these issues at various levels, the judgment and order of the Hon‟ble
High Court in Writ Petition filed by certain lease holders came to be
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 17 of 101
delivered on 13th August, 2014 whereby the Hon‟ble High Court has
directed the execution of the Lease Deeds under Section 8(3) of the
MMRD Act in favour of the lease holders who have already paid the
stamp duty pursuant to Orders of the State Government in
accordance with the Goa Mineral Policy, 2013, placed before the
Hon‟ble Supreme Court and subject to the conditions…..
This judgment and order of the Hon’ble High Court virtually
leaves no choice to the State Government, thereby to completely
abandon the process of competitive bedding [bidding] for
earning the best revenue to the State Government. While this
was the position taken by the State Government in the Goa
Mineral Policy, 2013, and the Hon‟ble High Court has interpreted
the Order of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court in Writ Petition (Civil)
No.435/2012, the State Government in view of Hon’ble High
Court order, has for the present ruled out the process of going
for competitive bidding. The State Government is considering
actively, within its Constitutional powers and functions, to come out
with regulatory and controlling measures and levy and collect
appropriate returns having regard to the fact that the soil comprising
the land belongs to the State…. The State Government has also
commenced the inquiry and investigation into the violations of
matters under Rule 37 and 38 of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960
as directed by the Hon‟ble Supreme Court….
As is seen from the aforesaid, the Judgment and order of the Hon‟ble
High Court is an intervening circumstance inasmuch as it directs the
execution of Lease Deeds in 28 cases and consideration of the
Application under Section 8(3) by the State Government in the other
cases….
In the considered Opinion of the State Government, it would be
futile to challenge the Judgment of the Hon‟ble High Court before
the Hon‟ble Apex Court as that would once again delay the
commencement of the Mining Operations. As a matter of fact, a
substantial portion of the State‟s Revenue comes from the Mining
Sector. The State has been virtually starved of funds for undertaking
many activities including Infra-structural Projects; and on account of
the stopping of the Mining Operation, the State had to walk a tightrope
as there has been no Revenue coming from one of the major
source of Revenue….
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 18 of 101
Having regard to the aforesaid, the State Government thought it
proper to act in accordance with the Directions of the Hon‟ble
Supreme Court by balancing the equities, needs; as also to sub-serve
the Public Interest and by having sustainable development by
protecting the Ecological and all other factors.
Policy Framework.–– The State Government has been considering
and deliberating the entire matter, and thought it proper having
regard to the facts that:
(a) The Mining Lease Holders had applied for the Second Renewal
well within time.
(b) The fact that the Applications of the Mining lease holders for the
Second Renewal were not disposed off by the then State
Government and for which the Lease Holders cannot be blamed.
(c) Having further regard to the fact that 27 mining Lease Holders
despite the closure of the mining operations, when called by the
State to do so within the period, have paid the Stamp Duty; as also,
other levies.
(d) Such payments helped the State Government to override the
financial crisis at that point of time.
(e) Having regard to the fact that a large number of labour staff
employed with these lease holders.
(f) That concerned Mining Lease Holders have invested heavily into
the development of Mines; as also, into the Machinery such as
Ripper Dozers, Cranes, wheel loader, Beneficiation plants etc.
(g) Other methods are not as suitable as this method for various
reasons listed [in] Hon‟ble Chief Minister statement to the House
listed above.
The State Government after having considered the matter from every
possible angle, has decided to exercise its Power under Section 8(3)
of the Mines and Mineral Regulations and Development Act, 1957,
and to consider each of the cases on their own merits and subject
to compliance with the Conditions which may be laid down by the
State Government including for strict Pollution Control measures,
and thereafter take a decision on the renewal in terms of Section 8(3)
of the MMRD Act, 1957, complying fully with the Procedure laid
down therein.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 19 of 101
Though the State Government has in principle decided to follow the
route of the renewal of Lease under Section 8(3) of the MMRD Act,
it shall be subject to the following:-
Unless and until the Inquiry initiated pursuant to the Judgment
and Order of the Honourable Supreme Court of India against those
Mine Lease Holders found to be violating either Rule 37 or Rule 38
of the Mineral Concession Rules 1960, or otherwise indicted in the
Report of the Justice Shah Commission/PAC report or found to be
engaged in, any kind of illegality of whatsoever nature such as
illegal Sale of Ore, Sale of Royalty Challan without Ore,
Encroachment of adjoining areas outside the lease over production in
excess of the limit specified in the Environmental Clearance; those
which have undertaken unscientific mining operations; those who
have violated or have not paid the Royalty amount; those who have
re-used old Royalty Challans for defrauding; and those involved in
Illegal Mining Activities shall not be considered for renewal of
the Mining Leases.
For this purpose, presently the inquiries are in progress at various
levels and foras including the investigation by the SIT Team, by the
Team of Chartered Accountants which have been set up by the State
Government and after the Inquiry is complete or during the course of
the inquiry where it is found that any violations have taken place,
such persons shall not be considered for Grant/Renewal of the
Leases…..
Those Mining Lease Holders who have paid Stamp Duty, in
which there are no violations found in terms of Mr. Justice Shah
Inquiry/Public Accounts Committee Report, shall be considered
for Renewal. [Deleted from the gazetted Policy].
The formation of the entire Policy is aimed that it is required to
balance various interests having regard to the Principle of
Sustainable Development; but by keeping in mind the commercial
interest of the present state of economy, the interest of the labour
class, the interest of the working class including other staff, the
interest of the market in the Mining Localities, the interest of the
Public Sector, the interest of the existing Mining Lease Holders and
the overall welfare needs of the State; and require all urgent
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 20 of 101
infrastructural development. By balancing all these interests the
present Policy has been formulated by the State Government.”
The above policy is in principle decision of the State
Government and will be vetted for exact legal requirements
from specific necessities as also from financial view points and
notified thereafter.”
6
[Deleted from the gazetted Policy]. [Emphasis
supplied by us].
26. Around this time, and pursuant to the Budget Speech given by the
Hon‟ble Minister of Finance of the Government of India on 10th July, 2014 it
appears that steps were being taken by the concerned Ministry in the
Government of India to amend the MMDR Act.7
In fact a draft Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2014 was prepared on or about
16th November, 2014 and uploaded on the website of the Ministry of Mines
on 17th November, 2014. This information was placed before us from the
response given by the Hon‟ble Minister of Mines to Unstarred Question No.
2485 to be answered in the Lok Sabha on 8th December, 2014. The question
was:
(a) whether the Government proposes to formulate a new policy on
grant of mining leases for various minerals by amending the Mines
and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957;
(b) if so, the details thereof along with the time by which the new
policy is likely to be implemented;
6
http://www.goadmg.gov.in/Uploads/288.pdf
7
122. “It is my Government’s intention to encourage investment in mining sector and promote sustainable mining
practices to adequately meet the requirements of industry without sacrificing environmental concerns. The
current impasse in mining sector, including, iron ore mining, will be resolved expeditiously. Changes, if necessary,
in the MMDR Act, 1957 would be introduced to facilitate this.” *Emphasis supplied by us+.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 21 of 101
And the answer was:
(a) & (b): Yes Madam. The Ministry has drafted the Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) (Amendment)
Bill, 2014, which has been uploaded on the website of the Ministry
on 17.11.2014, calling for comments/suggestions on the draft Bill.
The last date for receipt of the comments/suggestions is 10th
December 2014. Based on the comments/suggestions received the
draft Bill will be finalized and taken forward for introduction in the
Parliament.
The Bill is designed to put in place mechanisms for: (i) Improved
transparency in the allocation of mineral resources; (ii) Obtaining for
the government its fair share of the value of such resources; (iii)
Attracting private investment and the latest technology; and (iv)
Eliminating delay in administration, so as to enable expeditious and
optimum development of the mineral resources of the country.
27. What was the nature of the proposed amendments? As far as we are
concerned, the introduction of Section 10B in the MMDR Act (relating to
competitive bidding) is significant and this reads:
“Mining leases for notified minerals
10B. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained elsewhere in this Act,
but subject to the provisions of Section 10A and Section 17A, the
procedure for obtaining a mining lease for notified minerals in
respect of land in which the minerals vest in the Government shall
be as laid down in this Section.
(2) and (3) xxx
(4) For the purpose of granting a mining lease in respect of any
notified mineral in such notified area, the State Government shall
select, through auction by a method of competitive bidding,
including e-auction, an applicant who satisfies the eligibility
conditions.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 22 of 101
(5) The Central Government shall prescribe the terms and
conditions, and procedure, subject to which the auction will be
conducted, including the bidding parameters for the selection, which
could include a share in the production of the mineral, or any
payment linked to the royalty payable, or any other relevant
parameter, or any combination or modification of them.
(6) and (7) xxx”
[Iron ore was proposed as a notified mineral in the draft statute].
28. Immediately after 4th November, 2014 (the date on which the Grant of
Mining Leases Policy was uploaded on the website of the Government of
Goa) the State Government commenced granting a second renewal of the
mining leases from 5th November, 2014 onwards and that process was
completed on 12th January, 2015. The following table gives the dates of
second renewal of 88 mining leases granted by the State Government on or
before 12th January, 2015:
Sr. No. Date of renewal order Number of renewal orders passed
1. 5.11.2014 5
2. 6.11.2014 5
3. 7.11.2014 3
4. 10.12.2014 3
5. 24.12.2014 10
6. 1.1.2015 3
7. 2.1.2015 3
8. 5.1.2015 2
9. 6.1.2015 22
10. 9.1.2015 1
11. 12.1.2015 31
TOTAL = 88
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 23 of 101
29. The date of 12th January, 2015 is significant since on that date the
President promulgated the Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 (which was later enacted by
Parliament) whereby the grant of mining leases for notified minerals was
through competitive bidding or the auction process. It is important to
mention here that the approval of the Ordinance by the Cabinet of the
Government of India became public knowledge on 5th January, 20158
and it
is within a week from that date that the Government of Goa granted a second
renewal to 25 mining leases and to make matters worse, a second renewal
was granted to 31 mining leases on 12th January, 2015 the day the Ordinance
came into force making a total of 56 renewals of mining leases.
Environmental clearance and orders dated 20th March, 2015
30. Following the renewal of 88 mining leases, the State of Goa requested
the MoEF by letters dated 7th January, 2015 and 5th February, 2015 to lift the
abeyance order of 14th September, 2012 on the environmental clearances.
Consequently, the MoEF passed three orders on 20th March, 2015 (the actual
sequence of the orders is not very clear).
8
http://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/narendra-modi-cabinet-approves-ordinance-for-minesauction/story/214253.html
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Cabinet-approves-ordinance-for-minesauction/articleshow/45765290.cms
http://www.financialexpress.com/economy/reforms-cabinet-approves-ordinance-for-mines-auction/26342/
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/VDXphnUmPYGbN4lmzEBslK/Govt-passes-executive-order-to-auctionminerals.html
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 24 of 101
31. The first order of 20th March, 2015 was in the form of a letter
addressed to the Principal Secretary, Environment, Government of Goa and
it recorded that MoEF had considered all the 139 cases in which the
abeyance order has been passed and had taken into account the request of the
State Government, the recommendation of the EAC and the directions of
this Court. It was noted that the EAC had observed that there were
violations of the following nature: (i) No clearance from the National Board
of Wildlife and non-compliance of orders of this Court on the subject; (ii)
Excess production; (iii) Dump mining; (iv) Intersecting ground water table
and drawal of ground water without permission of the Central Ground Water
Board; (v) No forest clearance obtained where required; (vi) Encroachment
and false information/concealment of fact. It was stated that the MoEF had
decided to refer the cases to the appropriate authorities (including the State
Government) for taking action on the violations. Accordingly, a request was
made to examine the report of the EAC and take appropriate action against
the concerned lessees.
32. The second order passed on 20th March, 2015 was an Office
Memorandum to the effect that if a project proponent has a valid and
subsisting environmental clearance for a mining project under the
Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 27
th January, 1994 (EIA
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 25 of 101
1994) or Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 14th September,
2006 (EIA 2006), it will not be required to obtain a fresh environmental
clearance at the time of renewal of the mining lease. This was subject to the
maximum period of validity of 30 years for the environmental clearance for
a mining lease.
33. The third order passed on 20th March, 2015 related to lifting the
abeyance order dated 14th September, 2012 on the environmental clearance
of the mining leases for iron ore and manganese ore. The cases of all 139
mining leases in which the abeyance order was passed were considered and
the abeyance order lifted in respect of 72 cases. The details in this regard
are given in the table below:
Number Remarks Remaining
Total mines = 139
2 Inadvertent repetitions 137
2 Already withdrawn 135
12 Fully located in Protected Area (abeyance
order cannot be lifted)
123
6 Partly located in Protected Area (abeyance
order cannot be lifted)
117
23 Within 1 km. of Protected Area (awaiting
modification of order dated 4.8.2006 passed
by this Court)
94
22 Not having any Forest Clearance and will be
considered only after clearance is obtained
72
35 Environmental Clearance already granted
under EIA Notification of 27.1.1994 and no
fresh clearance is required in view of Office
Memorandum dated 20.3.2015.
Abeyance order lifted.
37
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 26 of 101
37 Environmental Clearance already granted
under EIA Notification of 14.9.2006.
Abeyance order lifted.
0
Abeyance order lifted on 20th March, 2015 for 72 mines out of 139
34. The third order of 20th March, 2015 also placed certain additional
specific conditions while lifting the abeyance order. These additional
conditions were:
1. State Government of Goa shall develop and implement a credible
mechanism to regularly monitor and ensure that capping of 20
MTPA on the mining leases in the State of Goa is implemented
as per the directions of Hon‟ble Supreme Court in its order dated
21.04.2014 and any further order in the matter of Goa
Foundation vs. Union of India in W.P. 435 of 2012.
2. No Mining shall be allowed in the forest land for which FC
[forest clearance] is not available.
3. The Mining of dumps is not permitted unless mentioned in
approved mine plan and Environmental Clearance letter.
4. Dumping of material outside the mine lease is not permitted
unless mentioned in approved mine plan and Environmental
Clearance letter.
5. Prior permission be obtained from Central Ground Water Board
for drawl of ground water and intersection of ground water table
as applicable.
6. Violations will be dealt as per the existing law and lifting of
abeyance of EC will not in any manner affect that.
7. If any violation is observed in future the environmental clearance
will be cancelled as per rules.
8. State Government will take action in cases of violation under
Section 15/19 of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 as noted
and recommended in EAC report.
9. Project Proponent will file six monthly compliance to Regional
Officer, MoEFCC and State Pollution Control Board.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 27 of 101
Questions for consideration
35. Broadly speaking, on the basis of the submissions and documents
placed before us, the questions raised by the Goa Foundation, the State of
Goa, the Union of India and the mining lease holders are three-fold:
(a) Relatable to the second renewal of the mining leases: (i) In view of
the decision in Goa Foundation only fresh leases were to be granted by the
State of Goa and not second renewals. (ii) For granting fresh leases, the State
of Goa should have introduced competitive bidding or the auction process.
(iii) Assuming the decision to grant a second renewal to the mining lease
holders was valid, the second renewals were not in accordance with law and
should be set aside.
(b) Relatable to the grant of environmental clearances: In view of the
decision in Goa Foundation fresh environmental clearances were required
to be obtained by the mining lease holders.
(c) The impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court in
Lithoferro on 13th August, 2014 was erroneous and deserves to be set aside.
Whether fresh mining leases were required to be granted?
36. The controversy in this regard has arisen in view of what is stated in
paragraph 82 of the decision in Goa Foundation. It was stated as follows:
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 28 of 101
“As we have held that the deemed mining leases of the lessees in
Goa expired on 22-11-1987 and the maximum period (20 years) of
renewal of the deemed mining leases in Goa has also expired on 22-
11-2007, mining by the lessees in Goa after 22-11-2007 was illegal.
Hence, the Order dated 10-9-2012 of the Government of Goa
suspending mining operations in the State of Goa and the Order
dated 14-9-2012 of MoEF, Government of India, suspending the
environmental clearances granted to the mines in the State of Goa,
which have been impugned in the writ petitions in the Bombay High
Court, Goa Bench (transferred to this Court and registered as
transferred cases) cannot be quashed by this Court. The Order
dated 10.9.2012 of the Government of Goa and the Order dated
14.9.2012 of the MoEF will have to continue till decisions are
taken by the State Government to grant fresh leases and
decisions are taken by MoEF to grant fresh environmental
clearances for mining projects.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
37. The issue that arose for discussion before us was the meaning and
intention of the Court in the context of grant of „fresh leases‟ for mining
projects. Did the Court literally mean that a fresh mining lease was required
to be granted or was a second renewal sufficient compliance?
38. As the above quoted paragraph indicates, the Court was aware and
conscious of the fact that the mining leases had expired on 22nd November,
2007 and the mining operations thereafter carried out by the mining lease
holders was illegal. For this reason, the Court held that the suspension order
passed by the State of Goa on 10th September, 2012 and the abeyance order
passed by the MoEF on 14th September, 2012 did not require any
interference.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 29 of 101
39. Since the mining operations carried out after 22nd November, 2007
were illegal, the Court, in subsequent paragraphs of the judgment noted (as a
follow up) that an order was passed on 5th October, 2012 suspending
transportation of iron ore and manganese ore from those leases identified by
the Justice Shah Commission.9
Thereafter on 11th November, 2013 it was
directed that an inventory be made of the excavated mineral ores and the
inventoried mineral ores be sold by e-auction under the supervision of a
Monitoring Committee.10
40. Further, it was held by the Court on 21st April, 2014 that from the eauction
sale of the mineral ores, the mining lease holders would be entitled
to the average cost (not the actual cost) of extraction, the workers would be
entitled to 50% wages and allowances on the principle of laid-off
compensation and the Marmagao Port Trust would be entitled to 50% of the
storage charges. Out of the balance amount, 10% would be appropriated to
the Goan Iron Ore Permanent Fund for the purpose of sustainable
development and intergenerational equity and the remaining amount would
be appropriated by the State who is the owner of the mineral ores illegally
excavated by the mining lease holders and sold by e-auction.
9
Goa Foundation v. Union of India, WP (C) 435 of 2012 – order dated 5th October, 2012
10 Goa Foundation v. Union of India, (2014) 6 SCC 738
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 30 of 101
With this in mind, the Court declared in paragraph 87.5 of the Report:
“It is for the State Government to decide as a matter of policy in
what manner mining leases are to be granted in future but the
constitutionality or legality of the decision of the State Government
can be examined by the Court in exercise of its power of judicial
review.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
It was then directed by the Court in paragraph 88.4 of the Report as
follows:
“The State Government may grant mining leases of iron ore and
other ores in Goa in accordance with its policy decision and in
accordance with the MMDR Act and the Rules made thereunder in
consonance with the constitutional provisions.” [Emphasis supplied
by us].
41. The Court was quite obviously aware that it was concerned, inter alia,
with the second renewal of mining leases and yet it chose to recount the
factual situation, make a declaration and pass a direction without adverting
to the possibility of a second renewal of a mining lease. The Court was also
conscious that the mining lease holders had carried out indiscriminate and
illegal mining for about five years (from November 2007 to September
2012) and had made profits out of the illegal mining. The Court, in our
opinion, was rather charitable in not penalizing the mining lease holders for
the illegal mining carried out by them. But be that as it may, quite clearly,
the sequence of events from September 2012 onwards, the appointment of a
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 31 of 101
Monitoring Committee to dispose of the illegally mined ore, the declaration
and direction unmistakably point to the intention of the Court to end the
sordid chapter of illegal mining by the lease holders and start on a clean
slate. Viewed in this perspective, we have no doubt that the Court really did
intend the State of Goa to consider the grant of fresh leases in accordance
with law.
42. In this context, the declaration of the Court in Goa Foundation in
paragraph 87.5 of Report is also quite clear, namely, “It is for the State
Government to decide as a matter of policy in what manner mining leases
are to be granted in future….” The declaration was explicit and related to
the grant of mining leases and not a second renewal.
43. Similarly, the direction given in paragraph 88.4 of the Report that
“The State Government may grant mining leases of iron ore and other ores
in Goa in accordance with its policy decision…..” was equally explicit and
related to the grant of mining leases and not a second renewal.
44. Subsequent events confirm our impression and view. The decision of
the Court to e-auction the mined mineral ore was sought to be recalled
through I.A. No. 86 of 2014 filed by M/s Bandekar Brothers Private Ltd.
The applicant prayed for a direction to restrain the authorities from eauctioning
the iron ore mined by it prior to 22nd November, 2007 and that
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 32 of 101
the mined ore should be released to the applicant with the right to dispose of
the same. A Bench of three learned judges (other than those that decided
Goa Foundation) noted that: “The submissions advanced on behalf of the
applicant were premised merely on the assertion, that the mineral ore which
the applicant was claiming a right over, had been legitimately mined before
22.11.2007, and therefore, the applicant had an absolute and legitimate
ownership over the same. We may note, that the above position was
emphasized, stressed and persistently reiterated to make the stand absolutely
crystal clear.” The learned judges considered the submissions and held by an
order dated 14th October, 2014 that the direction in Goa Foundation was
clear and categorical that the iron ore vested in the State Government and
therefore the application deserved dismissal. In other words, the mining
lease holders deserved no latitude for the illegal mining and all issues
needed to be dealt with strictly.
45. There is additional material to support the view that the Court had
intended the State of Goa to grant fresh mining leases rather than grant a
second renewal.
46. From a reading of the decision rendered by the Bombay High Court in
Lithoferro (subject matter of SLP (C) No. 32138 of 2015 and SLP (C) Nos.
32699-32727 of 2015) it is evident that the State of Goa understood the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 33 of 101
decision of this Court in Goa Foundation to mean that fresh mining leases
were required to be granted on the basis of a policy yet to be framed by the
State of Goa and the issue of second renewals did not survive consideration.
The contention of the learned Advocate General of the State of Goa in this
regard is recorded by the High Court in the following words:
“The learned Advocate General [of the State of Goa] took us through
the Judgment of the Apex Court in Writ Petition (C) 435/2012 and
relied upon the observations of the Supreme Court in paras 67, 68,
69 and 70. The learned Advocate General submitted that the
Honourable Supreme Court has held that the deemed mining leases
of the lessees in Goa expired on 22nd November, 1987 and the
maximum of 20 years renewal period of the deemed mining leases in
Goa as provided under subsection (2) of Section 8 of the MMDR
Act, read with sub-Rules 8 and 9 of Rule 24-A of the MC Rules
expired on 22nd November, 2007. The learned Advocate General
submitted that in view of these findings of the Supreme Court,
there is no question of renewal of the mining leases. The learned
Advocate General submitted that in terms of the Supreme Court
decision, it is for the State Government to grant fresh leases in
accordance with the policy which is yet to be framed. The learned
Advocate General submitted that the Supreme Court has kept Writ
Petition (C) 435/2012 pending and, therefore, it is for the petitioners
to approach the Supreme Court and seek appropriate orders. The
learned Advocate General submitted that the orders on which
the petitioners rely, at the most show that the Government in
principle has agreed for renewal of the leases for a further
period of 20 years and the same was not a final decision. He
submitted that in terms of the said decision of the Apex Court, it
is for the State Government to frame a fresh mining policy and
after framing the same, to decide granting of fresh mining
leases.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
47. While considering the submissions of the learned Advocate General
and learned counsel, the High Court noted that this Court was alive to the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 34 of 101
fact that the State of Goa had granted in-principle second renewal to 28
mining leases and had collected renewal fees or stamp duty from 27 mining
leases (presumably out of the 28 mining leases) as stated in the brief resume
filed by the State of Goa in this Court. The High Court noted:
(II) In the brief resume presented by the State of Goa and placed on
record of the Supreme Court, in Writ Petition (C) 435/2012, it is
inter alia, mentioned thus:
“…Presently in the State of Goa, it is found that the Applications for
Renewal were filed well within time as contemplated by Rule 24A
of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960. Presently, the State has
ordered renewal of 28 mining leases, granted in principle approvals
and has collected Renewal Fees/Stamp Duty from 27 Mining
Leases..”
48. In other words, notwithstanding the in-principle grant of second
renewal of 28 mining leases and collection of renewal fees or stamp duty,
this Court in Goa Foundation consciously required the State of Goa to grant
fresh leases. What is equally significant is that the State of Goa also
understood the decision of the Court in the same manner and intended to act
on that basis.
49. Unfortunately, the State of Goa was overtaken by events in that the
High Court delivered its judgment in Lithoferro on 13th August, 2014 and
while doing so, it misunderstood or incorrectly appreciated the decision of
this Court in Goa Foundation and disagreed with the view of the State of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 35 of 101
Goa. While this Court had required the State of Goa to grant fresh mining
leases and the State of Goa was willing to comply with this direction, the
High Court instead directed it to execute mining leases under Section 8(3) of
the MMDR Act in respect of those who had paid the renewal fees or stamp
duty. The High Court also directed the State of Goa to decide their pending
second renewal applications within a period of three months keeping in mind
the provisions of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act (presumably after paying
the renewal fees or stamp duty in terms of the Government order of 21st
February, 2013). The understanding by the High Court of the decision of
this Court in Goa Foundation is totally incorrect.
50. It appears from the contents of the Grant of Mining Leases Policy that
in view of the decision of this Court in Goa Foundation the State was
actively considering a policy for granting fresh mining leases by considering
several factors. However, the decision and directions of the High Court
supervened leaving no choice, according to the State, but to completely
abandon the process of grant of fresh mining leases through the process of
competitive bidding for earning revenue and justify the abandonment.
51. As per the Grant of Mining Leases Policy, the State of Goa therefore
had two realistic options before it: (i) To implement the judgment and order
of this Court in Goa Foundation (as understood by the State of Goa) and
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 36 of 101
grant fresh mining leases in the manner felt appropriate and in accordance
with law; (ii) To abide by the judgment of the High Court (and its
understanding of the judgment of this Court in Goa Foundation while
rejecting its understanding by the State of Goa) and grant second renewal to
the mining leases in terms of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act. The State of
Goa appears to have taken the view that challenging the decision of the High
Court (and therefore abiding by the decision of this Court) would delay the
commencement of mining operations. The State took into consideration that
a substantial portion of its revenue comes from the mining sector and that
the State had been virtually starved of funds on account of stoppage of
mining operations. Therefore, the State decided to grant a second renewal to
the mining leases and not grant fresh leases. This is quite apparent from the
contents of the Grant of Mining Leases Policy wherein the above facts and
conclusions have been stated in greater detail. Was this decision correct?
52. Learned counsel for the mining lease holders submitted that the
renewal of a mining lease is equivalent to or amounts to the grant of a fresh
lease and therefore when the mining leases were renewed, it amounted to the
grant of a fresh lease in compliance with the directions of this Court.
Reliance was placed upon Delhi Development Authority v. Durga Chand
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 37 of 101
Kaushish11 wherein this Court held:
“A renewal of a lease is really the grant of a fresh lease. It is called a
“renewal” simply because it postulates the existence of a prior lease
which generally provides for renewals as of right. In all other
respects, it is really a fresh lease.”
53. Reference was also made to Provash Chandra Dalui v. Biswanath
Banerjee12 in which it was held in paragraph 14 of the Report that there is a
distinction between extension of a lease and renewal of a lease. We do not
find any relevance of this to our discussion. Reference was also made to the
view expressed in M.C. Mehta v. Union of India13 wherein this Court noted
that it is settled law that grant of renewal is a fresh grant and must be
consistent with law.
54. Finally reliance was placed on State of West Bengal v. Calcutta
Mineral Supply Company Private Limited14 in which decision it was noted
in paragraph 31 of the Report that the renewal of a lease is a fresh grant.
This decision also refers to Gajraj Singh v. State Transport Appellate
Tribunal15 wherein this Court observed in paragraph 38 of the Report that
the grant of renewal is a fresh grant though it breathes life into the operation
of the previous lease or licence granted.
11 (1973) 2 SCC 825
12 1989 Supp (1) SCC 487
13 (2004) 12 SCC 118
14 (2015) 8 SCC 655
15 (1997) 1 SCC 650
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 38 of 101
55. There is no doubt that the renewal of a lease is virtually the same as
the grant of a fresh lease but a converse direction to grant a mining lease
cannot be understood to mean granting a renewal of a mining lease.
Obviously, the grant of a fresh lease is not the same as the renewal of a lease
and when the Court in Goa Foundation required the State of Goa to grant a
fresh lease, it did not require the State to renew the existing (expired) lease.
The Court could have explicitly declared and directed the State of Goa to
grant a second renewal of the mining leases rather than to say it in a
roundabout manner that it should do so by granting a fresh lease equivalent
to a renewal. We simply cannot accept the submissions made by learned
counsel for the mining lease holders in this regard.
56. That apart, as we have already noted above, the context and material
on record disabuse the thought that the Court in Goa Foundation did not
mandate the grant of fresh mining leases in accordance with law.
57. Learned counsel for the mining lease holders contended that the very
same learned judges that decided Goa Foundation permitted the State
Government in Common Cause v. Union of India16 to consider granting a
second renewal of mining leases under Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act.
Therefore the requirement in Goa Foundation for the grant of „fresh leases‟
16 (2014) 14 SCC 155
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 39 of 101
must be understood in a manner similar to what was directed in Common
Cause. We are unable to accept this contention. The direction given in
Common Cause was an interim direction and not a final direction as in Goa
Foundation. Moreover, the facts in both cases are not at all similar so as to
warrant a similar order being passed or understood. Finally, the fact that the
same set of learned judges thought it fit to direct the grant of „fresh leases‟ in
one set of cases and thought it fit to direct consideration of a „second
renewal‟ in another set of cases indicates that the learned judges were aware
of the difference in directions. Therefore when the leaned judges directed the
grant of „fresh leases‟ in Goa Foundation it was a deliberate and conscious
decision distinct and different from granting a second renewal of expired
mining leases.
58. In our opinion, the direction in Goa Foundation is quite clear and
instead of considering the grant of a second renewal of the mining leases, the
State of Goa was required to consider the grant of fresh mining leases.
Therefore the decision of the State of Goa to grant a second renewal of the
mining leases is erroneous, contrary to the decision in Goa Foundation and
must be and is quashed.
Whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining leases?
59. As mentioned in the Grant of Mining Leases Policy there were several
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 40 of 101
options available to the State of Goa. It took the view that all its options
were foreclosed post the decision of the High Court and it was obliged to
grant a second renewal of the mining leases. We have already held that this
was not so and that the decision to grant a second renewal of the mining
leases was erroneous and fresh leases were required to be granted in
accordance with the decision in Goa Foundation. In view of our conclusion,
the discussion on whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining
leases through a process of competitive bidding is now rendered academic.
However, since detailed submissions were made by learned counsel on both
sides, including by the learned Additional Solicitor General, we propose to
express our views on the subject.
60. The discussion on the question of auction being the only method of
allocation or disposal of natural resources arose due to the view expressed
by this Court in Centre for Public Interest Litigation v. Union of India.
17 In
that decision (hereafter referred to as CPIL – although this case is generally
referred to as the 2G scam case) the Court dealt with the question of
following a non-discriminatory policy for alienation of natural resources.
While doing so it was observed that an auction is “perhaps the best method
for discharging this burden” and concluded by holding that “while
17 (2012) 3 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 41 of 101
transferring or alienating the natural resources, the State is duty-bound to
adopt the method of auction by giving wide publicity so that all eligible
persons can participate in the process.” This led to the belief that the view of
this Court was that natural resources should be alienated or disposed of only
by auction and by no other method. The Court held in paragraphs 95 and 96
of the Report as follows:
“This Court has repeatedly held that wherever a contract is to be
awarded or a licence is to be given, the public authority must adopt a
transparent and fair method for making selections so that all eligible
persons get a fair opportunity of competition. To put it differently,
the State and its agencies/instrumentalities must always adopt a
rational method for disposal of public property and no attempt
should be made to scuttle the claim of worthy applicants. When it
comes to alienation of scarce natural resources like spectrum, etc. it
is the burden of the State to ensure that a non-discriminatory method
is adopted for distribution and alienation, which would necessarily
result in protection of national/public interest.
In our view, a duly publicised auction conducted fairly and
impartially is perhaps the best method for discharging this burden
and the methods like first-come-first-served when used for alienation
of natural resources/public property are likely to be misused by
unscrupulous people who are only interested in garnering maximum
financial benefit and have no respect for the constitutional ethos and
values. In other words, while transferring or alienating the
natural resources, the State is duty-bound to adopt the method
of auction by giving wide publicity so that all eligible persons
can participate in the process.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
61. In Manohar Lal Sharma v. Principal Secretary18 a Bench of 3 judges
of this Court paraphrased the above passages and observed that the view
18 (2014) 9 SCC 516
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 42 of 101
expressed in CPIL necessitated a reference by the President of India to this
Court under Article 143(1) of the Constitution being Special Reference No.
1 – Natural Resources Allocation.
19
62. What was the Advisory Opinion given by this Court in Natural
Resources Allocation? Among the questions referred for opinion were the
following:
Question 1. Whether the only permissible method for disposal of all
natural resources across all sectors and in all circumstances is by the
conduct of auctions?
Question 2. Whether a broad proposition of law that only the route
of auctions can be resorted to for disposal of natural resources does
not run contrary to several judgments of the Supreme Court
including those of the larger Benches?
63. In the Reference, it was submitted before the Constitution Bench that
paragraphs 94 to 96 in CPIL laid down the ratio vis-à-vis disposal of natural
resources. It was argued that “these paragraphs lay down, as a proposition of
law, that all natural resources across all sectors, and in all circumstances are
to be disposed of by way of public auction, and on the other [hand], it was
urged that the observations therein were made only qua spectrum.”
64. The submissions made by learned counsel were then discussed and
thereafter this Court recorded its conclusions between paragraphs 82 and 84
of Natural Resources Allocation. In paragraph 84, it was held:
19 (2012) 10 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 43 of 101
“84. Thus, having come to the conclusion that 2G case20 does not
deal with modes of allocation for natural resources, other than
spectrum, we shall now proceed to answer the first question of the
Reference pertaining to other natural resources, as the question
subsumes the essence of the entire reference, particularly the set of
first five questions.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
65. Thereafter, while answering the first question in the Reference, the
Court considered the issue from various perspectives. It first dealt with the
issue in the context of Article 14 and Article 39(b) of the Constitution and
concluded in paragraph 120 of the Report that the disposal of natural
resources for revenue maximization through auctions is not a constitutional
mandate. It was held:
“Therefore, in conclusion, the submission that the mandate of Article
14 is that any disposal of a natural resource for commercial use must
be for revenue maximisation, and thus by auction, is based neither
on law nor on logic. There is no constitutional imperative in the
matter of economic policies—Article 14 does not predefine any
economic policy as a constitutional mandate. Even the mandate of
Article 39(b) imposes no restrictions on the means adopted to
subserve the public good and uses the broad term “distribution”,
suggesting that the methodology of distribution is not fixed.
Economic logic establishes that alienation/allocation of natural
resources to the highest bidder may not necessarily be the only way
to subserve the common good, and at times, may run counter to
public good. Hence, it needs little emphasis that disposal of all
natural resources through auctions is clearly not a constitutional
mandate.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
66. The issue was then considered from the standpoint of legitimate
deviations from an auction. After adverting to several decisions of this Court
20 Centre for Public Interest Litigation v. Union of India (CPIL case or 2G scam case)
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 44 of 101
where auctions were not the favoured method of allocation of natural
resources, it was held between paragraphs 129 and 131 of the Report as
follows:
“Hence, it is manifest that there is no constitutional mandate in
favour of auction under Article 14. The Government has repeatedly
deviated from the course of auction and this Court has repeatedly
upheld such actions. The judiciary tests such deviations on the
limited scope of arbitrariness and fairness under Article 14 and its
role is limited to that extent. Essentially, whenever the object of
policy is anything but revenue maximisation, the executive is
seen to adopt methods other than auction.
A fortiori, besides legal logic, mandatory auction may be contrary to
economic logic as well. Different resources may require different
treatment. Very often, exploration and exploitation contracts are
bundled together due to the requirement of heavy capital in the
discovery of natural resources. A concern would risk undertaking
such exploration and incur heavy costs only if it was assured
utilisation of the resource discovered: a prudent business
venture would not like to incur the high costs involved in
exploration activities and then compete for that resource in an
open auction. The logic is similar to that applied in patents. Firms
are given incentives to invest in research and development with the
promise of exclusive access to the market for the sale of that
invention. Such an approach is economically and legally sound and
sometimes necessary to spur research and development. Similarly,
bundling exploration and exploitation contracts may be necessary to
spur growth in a specific industry.
Similar deviation from auction cannot be ruled out when the object
of a State policy is to promote domestic development of an industry,
like in Kasturi Lal case21discussed above. However, these examples
are purely illustrative in order to demonstrate that auction cannot be
the sole criterion for alienation of all natural resources.”
[Emphasis supplied by us].
21 (1980) 4 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 45 of 101
67. Finally, the issue was considered from the point of view of the
potential of abuse in allocation of natural resources other than through
auction and in this context it was held in paragraph 135 of the Report:
“Therefore, a potential for abuse cannot be the basis for striking
down a method as ultra vires the Constitution. It is the actual abuse
itself that must be brought before the court for being tested on
the anvil of constitutional provisions. In fact, it may be said that
even auction has a potential of abuse, like any other method of
allocation, but that cannot be the basis of declaring it as an
unconstitutional methodology either. These drawbacks include
cartelisation, the “winner's curse” (the phenomenon by which a
bidder bids a higher, unrealistic and unexecutable price just to
surpass the competition; or where a bidder, in case of multiple
auctions, bids for all the resources and ends up winning licences for
exploitation of more resources than he can pragmatically execute),
etc. However, all the same, auction cannot be called ultra vires for
the said reasons and continues to be an attractive and preferred
means of disposal of natural resources especially when revenue
maximisation is a priority. Therefore, neither auction, nor any
other method of disposal can be held ultra vires the
Constitution, merely because of a potential abuse.” [Emphasis
supplied by us].
68. The conclusion arrived at by the Constitution Bench was then
recorded between paragraphs 148 and 150 of the Report in the following
words:
“In our opinion, auction despite being a more preferable method
of alienation/allotment of natural resources, cannot be held to be a
constitutional requirement or limitation for alienation of all natural
resources and therefore, every method other than auction cannot be
struck down as ultra vires the constitutional mandate.
Regard being had to the aforesaid precepts, we have opined that
auction as a mode cannot be conferred the status of a constitutional
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 46 of 101
principle. Alienation of natural resources is a policy decision, and
the means adopted for the same are thus, executive prerogatives.
However, when such a policy decision is not backed by a social
or welfare purpose, and precious and scarce natural resources
are alienated for commercial pursuits of profit maximising
private entrepreneurs, adoption of means other than those that
are competitive and maximise revenue may be arbitrary and
face the wrath of Article 14 of the Constitution. Hence, rather
than prescribing or proscribing a method, we believe, a judicial
scrutiny of methods of disposal of natural resources should depend
on the facts and circumstances of each case, in consonance with the
principles which we have culled out above. Failing which, the Court,
in exercise of power of judicial review, shall term the executive
action as arbitrary, unfair, unreasonable and capricious due to its
antimony with Article 14 of the Constitution.
In conclusion, our answer to the first set of five questions is that
auctions are not the only permissible method for disposal of all
natural resources across all sectors and in all circumstances.”
[Emphasis supplied by us].
69. It is therefore more than explicit that there is no constitutional
requirement (let alone a mandate) for allocation of natural resources through
the auction method (other than spectrum) but at the same time the auction
process should not be given a go-bye without any justification – the decision
to give a go-bye is judicially reviewable though the scope of judicial review
might be rather restricted. The melting pot of allocation of a natural
resource, a social or welfare purpose and adherence to the requirements of
Articles 14 and 39(b) of the Constitution in matters of policy was a great
leap forward fashioned by the Constitution Bench. Consequently, while
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 47 of 101
there is no mandate, constitutional or otherwise, that natural resource
allocation must be only by auction, it is certainly “a more preferable
method”. There are exceptions, such as when the natural resource allocation
is for a “social or welfare purpose”. On the other hand if the natural resource
allocation is “for commercial pursuits of profit maximising private
entrepreneurs” de hors any social or welfare purpose, then judicial review
would be permissible and Article 14 of the Constitution would be attracted
and if the executive action is found to be arbitrary, it would be struck down.
Therefore, when it comes to natural resource allocation, the executive has a
somewhat limited elbow room.
70. In his concurring opinion, Justice Khehar took the view (in paragraph
186 of the Report) that: “…when natural resources are made available by the
State to private persons for commercial exploitation exclusively for their
individual gains, the State's endeavour must be towards maximisation of
revenue returns.” [Emphasis supplied by us] The learned judge concluded
his opinion by agreeing that an auction is one of the price recovery
mechanisms, but not the only one for allocation of natural resources. “That
should not be understood to mean that it can never be a valid method for
disposal of natural resources.” It was further held that natural resources
cannot be alienated by way of largesse – there must be a reciprocal
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 48 of 101
consideration either in the form of earning revenue or sub-serving the
common good or both. The learned judge had this to say:
“The policy of allocation of natural resources for public good can be
defined by the legislature, as has been discussed in the foregoing
paragraphs. Likewise, policy for allocation of natural resources may
also be determined by the executive. The parameters for determining
the legality and constitutionality of the two are exactly the same. In
the aforesaid view of the matter, there can be no doubt about the
conclusion recorded in the main opinion that auction which is just
one of the several price recovery mechanisms, cannot be held to be
the only constitutionally recognised method for alienation of natural
resources. That should not be understood to mean that it can never
be a valid method for disposal of natural resources (refer to paras
186 to 188 of my instant opinion).
I would, therefore, conclude by stating that no part of the natural
resource can be dissipated as a matter of largesse, charity,
donation or endowment, for private exploitation. Each bit of
natural resource expended must bring back a reciprocal
consideration. The consideration may be in the nature of earning
revenue or may be to “best subserve the common good”. It may
well be the amalgam of the two. There cannot be a dissipation of
material resources free of cost or at a consideration lower than
their actual worth. One set of citizens cannot prosper at the cost of
another set of citizens, for that would not be fair or reasonable.”
[Emphasis supplied by us].
71. This issue was considered in Goa Foundation as well. The Court
adverted to Natural Resources Allocation in paragraph 81 of the Report and
pithily expressed its view that the manner of granting a mining lease is a
policy decision of the State Government, but the decision can be examined
by way of judicial review. It was held:
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 49 of 101
“We are of the considered opinion that it is for the State Government
to decide as a matter of policy in what manner the leases of these
mineral resources would be granted, but this decision has to be taken
in accordance with the provisions of the MMDR Act and the Rules
made thereunder and in consonance with the constitutional
provisions and the decision taken by the State of Goa to grant a
mining lease in a particular manner or to a particular party can be
examined by way of judicial review by the Court.” [Emphasis
supplied by us].
It was then declared in paragraph 87.5 of the Report that:
“It is for the State Government to decide as a matter of policy in
what manner mining leases are to be granted in future but the
constitutionality or legality of the decision of the State
Government can be examined by the Court in exercise of its
power of judicial review.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
Similarly, in Manohar Lal Sharma this Court adverted to the issue
and noted the following in paragraph 98 of the Report:
“The Constitution Bench [Natural Resources Allocation] clarified
that the statement of law in 2G case [CPIL] that while transferring or
alienating the natural resources, the State is duty-bound to adopt the
method of auction was confined to the specific case of spectrum and
not for dispensation of all natural resources. The Constitution Bench
said that findings of this Court in 2G case were limited to the case of
spectrum and not beyond that and that it did not deal with the modes
of allocation for natural resources other than spectrum.”
The Court also referred to the views expressed by Justice Khehar and
held, in paragraph 104 of the Report:
“In light of the above legal position, the argument that auction is the
best way to select private parties as per Article 39(b) does not merit
acceptance.”
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 50 of 101
72. This Court then exercised its power of judicial review and considered
the merits of the explanation given by the Central Government for not
adopting the competitive bidding route for the allocation of coal blocks. The
various submissions made, the various hurdles faced (including objections of
the State Governments) as well as the impracticality of opening up the
allocation of coal blocks to competitive bidding were considered and then it
was held (after opening the window of Article 14 of the Constitution) in
paragraph 110 of the Report:
“The above facts show that it took almost 8 years in putting in place
allocation of captive coal blocks through competitive bidding.
During this period, many coal blocks were allocated giving rise to
present controversy, which was avoidable because competitive
bidding would have brought in transparency, objectivity and very
importantly given a level playing field to all applicants of coal and
lowered the difference between the market price of coal and the cost
of coal for the allottee by way of premium which would have
accrued to the Government. Be that as it may, once it is laid down by
the Constitution Bench of this Court in Natural Resources
Allocation that the Court cannot conduct a comparative study of
various methods of distribution of natural resources and cannot
mandate one method to be followed in all facts and circumstances,
then if the grave situation of shortage of power prevailing at that
time necessitated private participation and the Government felt that
it would have been impractical and unrealistic to allocate coal blocks
through auction and later on in 2004 or so there was serious
opposition by many State Governments to bidding system, and the
Government did not pursue competitive bidding/public auction
route, then in our view, the administrative decision of the
Government not to pursue competitive bidding cannot be said to be
so arbitrary or unreasonable warranting judicial interference. It is not
the domain of the Court to evaluate the advantages of competitive
bidding vis-à-vis other methods of distribution/disposal of natural
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 51 of 101
resources. However, if the allocation of subject coal blocks is
inconsistent with Article 14 of the Constitution and the
procedure that has been followed in such allocation is found to
be unfair, unreasonable, discriminatory, non-transparent,
capricious or suffers from favouritism or nepotism and violative
of the mandate of Article 14 of the Constitution, the
consequences of such unconstitutional or illegal allocation must
follow.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
73. More recently in M/s. Ajar Enterprises Private Limited v.
Satyanarayan Somani22 this Court once again examined the issue of
distribution of natural resources and held:
“Undoubtedly, disposal of natural resources by auction is not a
mandatory principle for, as the Constitution Bench held,
23 individual
statutes may provide for modalities of transfer by alternate modes
which subserve public interest. ….. The choice of methods is not left
to the unbridled discretion of a public authority. Where a public
authority exercises an executive prerogative, it must nonetheless act
in a manner which would subserve public interest and facilitate
the distribution of scarce natural resources in a manner that
would achieve public good. Where a public authority implements a
policy, which is backed by a constitutionally recognised social
purpose intended to achieve the welfare of the community, the
considerations which would govern would be different from those
when it alienates natural resources for commercial exploitation.
When a public body is actuated by a constitutional purpose
embodied in the Directive Principles, the considerations which
weigh with it in determining the mode of alienation should be such
as would achieve the underlying object. In certain cases, the
dominant consideration is not to maximize revenues but to
achieve social good such as when the alienation is to provide
affordable housing to members of the Scheduled Castes or
Tribes or to implement housing schemes for Below the Poverty
Line (BPL) families. In other cases where natural resources are
alienated for commercial exploitation, a public authority cannot
22 2017 (10) SCALE 346
23 Natural Resource Allocation
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 52 of 101
allow them to be dissipated at its unbridled discretion at the cost
of public interest.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
The window is now more than ajar.
74. Till fairly recently, policy matters particularly of economic policy
were hands-off as far as the courts were concerned.24 But the recent
decisions of this Court, including by the Constitution Bench in its advisory
jurisdiction, have partially modified this theory and kept open the window to
judicially review such a policy if it does not serve the common good as
understood in Article 39(b) of the Constitution, if it violates Article 14 of the
Constitution and alienates natural resources for maximizing profits of private
entrepreneurs while sidelining Article 39(b) of the Constitution. “The
legislature and the executive are answerable to the Constitution and it is
there where the judiciary, the guardian of the Constitution, must find the
contours to the powers of disposal of natural resources, especially Article 14
and Article 39(b) [of the Constitution].
25
75. Notwithstanding this, a Court must exercise restraint and not set
aside Government policy only because it disagrees with it or because a better
policy could be framed or simply because it has the power to set aside the
policy. Policies framed by the State, after due consideration, must be
24 BALCO Employees’ Union (Regd) v. Union of India, (2002) 2 SCC 333 at paragraphs 46 and 47
25 Paragraph 95 of the Natural Resource Allocation decision
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 53 of 101
respected and given enough elbow room and flexibility for implementation.
Of course, there would be occasions when the implementation of a policy
has teething problems or some lacuna is discovered at a slightly later stage,
but that does not mean that policy itself is defective. Therefore, Courts must
be very cautious and circumspect in diluting or setting aside a policy and
must do so only if it is constitutionally unavoidable, otherwise good
governance could be a casualty.
76. The conclusions that could be drawn from all these decisions are: (i) It
is not obligatory, constitutionally or otherwise, that a natural resource (other
than spectrum) must be disposed of or alienated or allocated only through an
auction or through competitive bidding; (ii) Where the distribution,
allocation, alienation or disposal of a natural resource is to a private party for
a commercial pursuit of maximizing profits, then an auction is a more
preferable method of such allotment; (iii) A decision to not auction a natural
resource is liable to challenge and subject to restricted and limited judicial
review under Article 14 of the Constitution; (iv) A decision to not auction a
natural resource and sacrifice maximization of revenues might be justifiable
if the decision is taken, inter alia, for the social good or the public good or
the common good; (v) Unless the alienation or disposal of a natural resource
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 54 of 101
is for the common good or a social or welfare purpose, it cannot be
dissipated in favour of a private entrepreneur virtually free of cost or for a
consideration not commensurate with its worth without attracting Article 14
and Article 39(b) of the Constitution.
Whether the decision of the State of Goa forsaking the auction route is
arbitrary?
77. Keeping in mind the broad principles identified above, the question
that arises for our consideration is whether the State of Goa was justified in
not adopting the auction route for the grant of mining leases and simply
granting a second renewal. For a better understanding of this issue, it would
be worthwhile to again refer to the Goa Mineral Policy, the report of the
EAC, the Grant of Mining Leases Policy and the decision of the Bombay
High Court, which documents were relied upon by the learned Additional
Solicitor General.
(i) Goa Mineral Policy
78. The Mineral Policy makes it very clear that during the period from
about 2006 till about 2012 (for about 5 years) extraction of iron ore in Goa
was nothing but a free-for-all situation. Illegalities and irregularities were
committed in abundance by all concerned, particularly the mining lease
holders. The Mineral Policy records that the State witnessed the peak of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 55 of 101
chaotic and unregulated mining. The thought of protecting and preserving
the environment, concern for the fragile ecology of Goa was far from the
thoughts of the stakeholders – even the well-being of the average Goan was
not taken into consideration by the stakeholders. A reading of the initial
paragraphs of the Mineral Policy suggests that nothing short of rapacious
mining was going on in Goa. Who were the beneficiaries of all this
rapaciousness? Could all this be ignored?
79. The Mineral Policy informs us that the beneficiaries of the
rapaciousness were not the domestic industry and certainly not the average
Goan. The reason for this is spelt out in the Mineral Policy itself. Iron ore
from Goa is not suitable for the Indian industry due to the low Fe content
and the high silica presence. Therefore, there is no value addition to the
Indian industry and the iron ore was mined only for export – mainly to
China and also to Japan. With a port in the vicinity, Goan iron ore was an
attractive buy for the global market and the spin-offs benefited those in the
port, transporters and barge owners etc. The primary beneficiary of this was,
of course, the mining lease holder, a private entity, and the price was paid by
the average Goan who had to suffer a polluted environment and witness the
damage to the State‟s ecology.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 56 of 101
80. If the issues mentioned in the Mineral Policy are objectively
considered in strict monetary terms, the only conclusion that can be drawn is
that the extraction of iron ore was for commercial purposes and maximizing
the revenues of private entrepreneurs and not necessarily the State of Goa.
The natural resource was exploited by some mining lease holders for making
profits and nothing else. There were some collateral beneficiaries as well,
and they too were commercially driven entities such as barge owners, truck
owners etc. Under these circumstances, the question that arises is whether
the mining lease holders should have been given a second renewal of the
mining lease virtually for a song, that is, payment only of royalty, when they
were driven only by a profit motive or whether the mining leases ought to
have been auctioned? Unfortunately, the Mineral Policy did not advert to or
even consider any solution that would break from the past.
81. As far as the environment, the fragile ecology of Goa and the wellbeing
of the average Goan and the rule of law is concerned, the Mineral
Policy categorically states that the State had witnessed, from 2006-07 till
2011-12 the peak of chaotic and unregulated mining without any concern for
the fragile ecology and environment of the State or for the general wellbeing
of an average Goan. Surely, all this cannot be ignored or brushed
aside particularly since the exploitation of mineral resources for five years
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 57 of 101
had no element of social or public purpose, no concern for society and no
regard for the environment and the laws.
(ii) Vishwanath Anand Expert Appraisal Committee
82. A reading of the report of the EAC is disturbing and acutely highlights
the damage to the environment and ecology by the mining lease holders. The
complete indifference by all concerned is evident from a careful reading of
the report. We propose to refer to and quote in extenso the „summary of
observations‟ and the „concluding remarks‟ from the report of the EAC since
they are self explanatory:
“Summary of Observations
I. The absence of specific conditions highlighting the mandatory
requirement to obtain prior approval of the Standing Committee of
the NBWL [National Board for Wild Life] in the EC [Environmental
Clearance] has led to misinterpretation of the legal requirement.
There has been an inordinate delay of more than 5 years before
effective action against defaulting units were initiated by the
Ministry for non-compliance of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court order
dated 04.12.2006.
II. Out of 137 ECs, the requirement of obtaining approval of the
Standing Committee of the NBWL under the W.L. (P) Act 1972
[Wild Life (Protection) Act] has not been complied with in 123 cases
where the distances are less than 10 km from the nearest PA
[Protected Area].
III. In respect of 10 cases approval of the Standing Committee of the
NBWL is not mandatory as the mine leases are located beyond 10
km from nearest PA.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 58 of 101
IV. Contrary to the directions of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court dated
04.08.2006 in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 202/1995; ECs have been
accorded to 41 mines located within 1 km from the nearest PA.
V. In respect of 20 cases mine leases were renewed under MMDR Act,
1957 prior to grant of FCs [Forest Clearance].
VI. In 29 cases, project proponents have furnished wrong information
about distance from the nearest PAs.
VII. Non-compliance of various EC conditions such as excess
production/unauthorized dump mining/drawal of ground water
without prior approval of CGWB/encroachment; have also been
reported in respect of working mines.
Concluding Remarks
A reading of our observations and recommendations would show
that without exception, every proponent to whom an
environment clearance was issued has either violated its
conditions or has furnished information in the application which
has been distant from the truth. There are basically two types of
violations; one that cannot be legally condoned and those that can be
rectified with remedial measures. This is the reason why the
committee has recommended that all ECs for mines located within
one km from PAs should be revoked and in cases where untruthful
information was furnished in the application for EC, such mines
should not be allowed to reopen. In the case of those mines which
have been closed for more than five years, their reopening has not
been recommended without their applying de novo for a fresh
environmental clearance as micro environmental conditions on the
ground would have changed during the period they remained closed.
However, when one looks at the manner in which the directives
dated 04.08.2006 and 04.12.2006 of the Supreme Court have been
implemented one cannot help but feel that there is the absence of a
bridge mechanism within the Ministry to ensure and oversee that
directives of the Courts are complied with due diligence and
seriousness.
There are two factors which stand out; in some ECs as mentioned in
this report, the condition was inserted that the project proponent
should seek approval of the CWLW [Chief Wild Life Warden], in
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 59 of 101
others it was stated that approval of the Competent
Authority/Standing Committee of the NBWL should be obtained and
in a third category no condition at all was imposed, even though
some of these ECs pertain to the same meeting and timelines
between 2005 and 2007. It is strange that concerned officials in the
MOEF were not aware that other than the Standing Committee of the
NBWL no other person was authorised to grant the permission
envisaged by the order dated 04.12.2006 of the Supreme Court. This
is not to state that any discrepancy in the EC letter would absolve the
project proponent from complying with the law of the land. This has
resulted in creating ambiguity amongst many of the project
proponents and it was not until 01.01.2009, that the MOEF issued a
public notice clarifying the position.
Considering that some of the project proponents may have been
misguided by the ambivalence of the MOEF in not clearly
delineating the legal position, it is suggested that in the case of those
project proponents who did not conceal facts in their applications but
did not apply for permission to the Standing Committee of the
NBWL, their applications may be considered for being placed before
the Standing Committee of the NBWL. However this can in no way
be construed as a justification on the part of the project proponents
for not complying with the requirements of the law. It must be noted
for example that in those cases where mining has intersected the
ground water, approval of the CGWB [Central Ground Water Board]
had not been taken by the project proponents as was required by the
EC. Similarly, there are cases where mining operations have taken
place without obtaining a FC.
…….
As regards violations of the conditions of the ECs and where
environmental damage has been caused, the concerned proponents
should be made accountable and the MOEF should examine as to
how some monetary damages can be levied through due legal
process based on the Polluter Must Pay principle, the proceeds of
which could be used for environmental rehabilitation.
There are concerns about the carrying capacity of the area with
regard to its ability to sustain the extent and quantum of mining that
has taken place there. It is recommended that a carrying capacity
study should be commissioned for the area, or if another study by a
nationally recognised institution is coming to fruition the result of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 60 of 101
that should be acted upon. Such a study should also take into account
the impact of mining on the hydrology of the region and the extent
of pollution caused to surface and ground water. This study should
be compared to the earlier 10 years baseline data to determine the
impact of mining on the biodiversity and hydrology of the area in the
last decade. Based on the finding of this, a specific policy for
mining of iron ore in the region may be developed. Such a policy
along with a proper control and monitoring mechanism is necessary
in order to avoid a situation such as the one under question. It would
hopefully also ensure that mining in this region is carried out in
accordance with best sectoral practices using appropriately clean
technologies.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
83. The report of the EAC reveals that there is not a single environment
related or mining related law or legal requirement that was not violated by
one or the other mining lease holder. Quite clearly, the rule of
environmental law in Goa had gone with the wind.
84. There was one extremely important requirement relating to extraction
of groundwater – that is clearance from the Central Ground Water Board -
but even that was ignored. During the course of submissions, we were
informed that there is plenty of groundwater available in Goa. However,
what seems to have been overlooked is that with the intersection of
groundwater levels with mining operations, the groundwater would get
depleted much faster than expected or the quality of the groundwater would
deteriorate. It is for this reason that MoEF insisted that clearance for drawal
of groundwater must be taken from the Central Ground Water Board and
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 61 of 101
care taken in respect of the intersection of groundwater level with mining
operations (this happened in 46 cases). Unfortunately, no heed was paid to
these requirements by the State of Goa or any of the mining lease holders
and not one mining least holder has any clearance (where required) from the
Central Ground Water Board, or at least none was brought to our notice.
(iii) Decision of the Bombay High Court
85. The High Court essentially created two classes of applicants for the
grant of a mining lease – those in whose favour an in-principle decision had
been taken for a second renewal of the mining lease and who had paid the
necessary stamp duty in terms of the Government order of 21st February,
2013 and those who had not yet paid the requisite stamp duty.
86. As regards the first category, the High Court directed execution of the
mining lease in their favour in accordance with the provisions of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act. This was on the belief that the applicants had
applied for the second renewal within the prescribed time period; the Indian
Bureau of Mines had approved the mining plans of these applicants; the
Indian Bureau of Mines was subjectively satisfied that the second renewal
was in the interest of mineral development; and that in view of the principles
of promissory estoppel these applicants were entitled to a second renewal of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 62 of 101
their mining lease since they had altered their position to their detriment by
paying the stamp duty demanded.
87. As regards the second category (those who had not paid the stamp
duty), the High Court directed the State of Goa to decide their second
renewal application within a period of three months keeping in mind the
provisions of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act (and the requirement to pay the
stamp duty).
88. The decision of the High Court does not at all discuss the options
available to the State of Goa, namely, second renewal of the mining leases
versus auction of a natural resource. In fact it appears that the High Court
was not at all alive to the possibility of an auction of the mining leases,
notwithstanding the view canvassed by the learned Advocate General of the
State of Goa.
(iv) Goa Grant of Mining Leases Policy 2014
89. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy announced and issued on 4th
November, 2014 is perhaps the most important document in the entire
scheme of things and that is the reason it was read out extensively by the
learned Additional Solicitor General and that is why we have chosen to
quote it extensively.
90. A consideration of the contemporaneous facts beginning with the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 63 of 101
Budget Speech given by the Hon‟ble Minister of Finance of the Government
of India on 10th July, 2014 makes it clear that an amendment to the MMDR
Act was to be effected sooner than later. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy
overlooks that and proceeds on the basis that the judgment of the High Court
delivered on 13th August, 2014 left the Government of Goa with no choice
but to abandon the grant of mining leases through competitive bidding, even
though that might be the most appropriate method of obtaining the best
revenue for the public good. The Government of Goa had therefore “for the
present” ruled out the process of going in for competitive bidding keeping
also in mind that the State was virtually starved of funds and had to balance
the equities and needs of all, including the labour class, working class and
other staff, markets in mining localities, public sector, mining lease holders,
welfare needs of the State, environment and fragile ecology of the State and
general well-being of the average Goan.
91. The State of Goa was also alive to the fact that many (if not all)
mining lease holders had violated the terms of the mining lease or some
statutory obligation. Therefore, it was decided to categorize the offenders as
follows:
Category I – will be those Mining Leases which have no violations
or very minimal violation of any provision / condition of applicable
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 64 of 101
laws/rules orders/permissions etc. or those which cannot otherwise
be referred to as „violations‟.
Category II – are those Mining Leases which have been found to
have violated the Provisions of the Mineral Concession Rules
including Rules 37 and 38 and other matters as mentioned in the
Public Accounts Committee Report/Justice Shah Commission
Report. In this category, the State Government will consider each of
the cases on its own merits; and wherever the violations are noticed
subject to the same being remedied by paying appropriate
Penalty/Fines including those of forfeiture, the State Government
shall pass appropriate Orders in accordance with Law.
Category III – Mining leases will be those which are found to have
violated substantially any provision / condition of applicable laws /
rules/orders/permissions etc., and in which cases the State
Government shall determine the Lease/reject their „Application for
the Second Renewal‟.
92. The offences ranged, amongst others, from illegal sale of ore, sale of
royalty challan without ore, encroachment of adjoining areas outside the
lease, over production in excess of the limit specified in the environmental
clearance, unscientific mining operations, violations with respect to payment
of royalty amount, re-use of old royalty challans for defrauding, illegal
mining activities etc. etc. None of these are „minimal‟ violations. However,
and this is important, the Grant of Mining Leases Policy made it clear that
the following shall not be considered for renewal of mining leases: (i) Those
facing an inquiry initiated pursuant to the orders of this Court in paragraph
88.2 of Goa Foundation for the violation of Rules 37 and 38 of the Mineral
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 65 of 101
Concession Rules, 1960; (ii) Those indicted by the Justice M.B. Shah
Commission; and (iii) Those indicted by the Public Accounts Committee.
The Grant of Mining Leases Policy stated that inquiries are already in
progress “at various levels and foras” including a Special Investigation
Team and a team of Chartered Accountants. We dare say that violations
pointed out by the EAC ought also to have been taken into consideration.
93. Be that as it may, there is no doubt that iron ore mining in Goa was
solely for commercial purposes – it was extracted primarily for export to
China and Japan without any value addition to the domestic industry. True
this brought in considerable foreign exchange – nevertheless iron ore
extraction gave insignificant value addition (if at all) to Indian industry. The
only advantage that iron ore extraction gave to the State was in terms of
royalty, but the larger benefit accrued to the private mining lease holder who
could obtain a mining lease on renewal virtually free and without any social
or welfare purpose. In other words, the State sacrificed maximizing revenue
for no apparent positive reason, virtually surrendering itself to the
commercial and profit making motives of private entrepreneurs and ignoring
the interests of Goan society in general. Therefore, in principle, the decision
of the State of Goa to not auction the grant of mining leases was flawed in
that it did not serve the common or public or social good but primarily
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 66 of 101
assisted in filling the coffers of private entrepreneurs. We are not inclined to
go so far as to describe the decision as arbitrary since it is not necessary to
do so.
94. However, we make it clear that we have dealt with this issue because
it was canvassed before us. We are not inclined to quash the decision of the
State of Goa of not going in for competitive bidding for the grant of fresh
mining leases since it is not necessary in view of our conclusion that fresh
mining leases were required to be granted by the State of Goa.
95. At this stage we must refer to a submission made by Mr. C.U. Singh
learned counsel appearing for some of the mining lease holders. He
submitted that prior to 12th January, 2015 the MMDR Act did not permit the
auction of mining leases. Therefore, even if the State of Goa was desirous of
introducing competitive bidding for grant of fresh mining leases it could not
have done so. He drew our attention to Section 11 of the MMDR Act (as it
stood prior to its amendment in 2015) which provided a preferential right for
obtaining a prospecting license or mining lease to the holder of a
reconnaissance permit or prospecting license. He submitted, placing reliance
on Sandur Manganese and Iron Ores Limited v. State of Karnataka26 that
since the MMDR Act is a complete code in itself, the method or procedure
26 (2010) 13 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 67 of 101
for grant of a lease cannot travel outside the confines of the statute and the
Mineral Concession Rules, 1960 framed thereunder. Reference was made to
paragraphs 40 to 43 of the judgment:
“In view of the specific parliamentary declaration as discussed and
explained by this Court in various decisions, there is no question of
the State having any power to frame a policy dehors the MMDR Act
and the Rules.
In State of Assam v. Om Prakash Mehta27 this Court in SCC para 12
held that the MMDR Act, 1957 and the MC Rules, 1960 contain a
complete code in respect of the grant and renewal of prospecting
licences as well as mining leases in lands belonging to the
Government as well as lands belonging to private persons.
Again this Court in Quarry Owners' Assn. v. State of Bihar28 held
that both the Central and the State Government act as mere delegates
of Parliament while exercising powers under the MMDR Act and the
MC Rules.
It is not open to the State Government to justify grant based on
criteria that are dehors the MMDR Act and the MC Rules. The
exercise has to be done strictly in accordance with the statutory
provisions and if there is any deviation, the same cannot be
sustained. It is the normal rule of construction that when a statute
vests certain power in an authority to be exercised in a particular
manner then the said authority has to exercise it only in the manner
provided in the statute itself. This principle has been reiterated
in CIT v. Anjum M.H. Ghaswala29 SCC at p.644; Captain Sube
Singh v. Lt. Governor of Delhi30 and State of U.P. v. Singhara
Singh.
31” [Emphasis supplied by us].
27 (1973) 1 SCC 584
28 (2000) 8 SCC 655
29 (2002) 1 SCC 633
30 (2004) 6 SCC 440
31 (1964) 4 SCR 485
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 68 of 101
Reference may also be made to paragraph 44 of the Report that reads
thus:
“Mr. Harish N. Salve and Mr. Dushyant Dave, by drawing our
attention to the decision of this Court in TISCO Ltd. v. Union of
India [(1996) 9 SCC 709] , submitted that inasmuch as this Court
had upheld the grants based on “captive consumption”, there is no
flaw or error in the recommendation of the State Government dated
6-12-2004. A perusal of the above decision clearly shows that it
concerned with Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act which requires
consideration of the extremely general criterion of the interests of
mineral development before granting second renewal of a mining
lease. Unlike in Section 11(3), no further criteria were specified and
it was in this background, this Court upheld on the facts of that case
that relevant material taken into account by the Committee set up by
the Central Government rightly included “captive consumption”. In
view of the factual situation, the said decision can have no bearing
on initial grants of mining lease where the only permissible criteria
are the matters set out in Section 11(3) of the MMDR Act.”
96. The controversy in Sandur Manganese related to the grant of mining
leases contrary to the provisions of Section 11 of the MMDR Act in that a
non-statutory criterion was taken into consideration de hors Section 11 of
the MMDR Act for evaluating the applications and seeking approval of the
Central Government for granting a mining lease. This was held to be
impermissible and it may be so. In any event, paragraph 44 of the Report
makes it clear that there is a distinction between the requirements of Section
11(3) of the MMDR Act and Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act. Sandur
Manganese is not applicable to the facts of the present case.
97. Similarly, reference was made to the Statement of Objects and
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 69 of 101
Reasons for the Bill introduced in 2015 to amend the MMDR Act. It was
stated therein that “The present legal framework of the MMDR Act, 1957,
does not permit the auctioning of mineral concessions.”
98. This submission need not detain us since we are not required to
adjudicate whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining leases
or not. The State of Goa decided to renew the mining leases and we are only
called upon to decide (i) Whether the policy decision not to auction the grant
of mining leases was arbitrary (we have already held that we are not required
to express a final opinion on this). We may, however, recall en passant that
the Goa Grant of Mining Leases Policy proceeded on the basis that the
auction of mining leases was permissible and that had the sanction of the
Court in Goa Foundation. It may be added that the MMDR Act did not
prohibit the auction of mining leases. (ii) Whether the second renewals were
in accordance with law and the constitutional principles.
99. We may also note that the Constitution Bench in Natural Resources
Allocation referred to the submission that if auction were the only method of
allocating natural resources (as it appears from CPIL) then the mandate
would create a conflict with some statutes including the MMDR Act. The
Constitution Bench dealt with this submission in paragraph 83 of the Report
by observing:
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 70 of 101
“Moreover, if the judgment in 2G case32 is to be read as holding
auction as the only permissible means of disposal of all natural
resources, it would lead to the quashing of a large number of laws
that prescribe methods other than auction e.g. the MMDR Act.”
However, the Constitution Bench did not advert to the consequence vis-à-vis
the MMDR Act of holding that auction was not mandated as the only
method of allocating a natural resource. Since the question does not arise in
these cases, we decline to go into this issue – we need not finally adjudicate
whether the State of Goa should have auctioned the mining leases but we are
called upon to decide whether the grant of second renewals was valid in law.
Judicial review of renewals
100. In view of decisions of this Court, including in Natural Resources
Allocation it is permissible for this Court to judicially review, to a limited
and restricted extent, the Grant of Mining Leases Policy, among other
things, if it falls foul of Article 14 read with Article 39(b) of the Constitution
and if it ignores the common or public or social good but benefits private
entrepreneurs, particularly when it involves the natural resources, by
sacrificing the maximization of revenue for the State.
101. In Natural Resources Allocation the Constitution Bench observed
that “Alienation of natural resources is a policy decision, and the means
32 (2012) 3 SCC 1
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 71 of 101
adopted for the same are thus, executive prerogatives. However, when such
a policy decision is not backed by a social or welfare purpose, and precious
and scarce natural resources are alienated for commercial pursuits of profit
maximising private entrepreneurs, adoption of means other than those that
are competitive and maximise revenue may be arbitrary and face the wrath
of Article 14 of the Constitution.”
102. Similarly in Goa Foundation this Court declared that “It is for the
State Government to decide as a matter of policy in what manner mining
leases are to be granted in future but the constitutionality or legality of the
decision of the State Government can be examined by the Court in exercise
of its power of judicial review.”
103. Despite the dicta of the Constitution Bench and the declaration made
by this Court in Goa Foundation we do not propose to judicially review the
Grant of Mining Leases Policy but to consider on merits whether the grant of
second renewal to the mining leases was in accordance with the Grant of
Mining Leases Policy and the law.
104. In our opinion, in renewing the mining leases, the State of Goa
completely ignored several relevant and important and significant factors
giving the impression that the renewals were not quite fair or reasonable.
105. For one, the State ignored the fact that every single mining lease
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 72 of 101
holder had committed some illegality or the other in varying degrees. To
identify these illegalities (although they had already been identified by the
Justice Shah Commission and by the EAC), a Special Investigation Team
had been set up as also a team of Chartered Accountants. Instead of waiting
for a report from any one of these teams, the State acted in violation of the
Grant of Mining Leases Policy and renewed the mining leases. Why was the
report from the Special Investigation Team not awaited or called for and
examined? In the Grant of Mining Leases Policy it was clearly and explicitly
stated (as mentioned above) as follows:
“Unless and until the Inquiry initiated pursuant to the Judgment and
Order of the Hon‟ble Supreme Court of India against those Mine
Lease Holders found to be violating either Rule 37 or Rule 38 of the
Mineral Concession Rules, 1960, or otherwise indicated in the
Report of the Justice Shah Commission/PAC report or found to be
engaged in, any kind of illegality of whatsoever nature such as
illegal Sale of Ore, Sale of Royalty Challan without Ore,
Encroachment of adjoining areas outside the lease over production in
excess of the limit specified in the Environmental Clearance; those
which have undertaken unscientific mining operations; those who
have violated or have not paid the Royalty amount; those who have
re-used old Royalty Challans for defrauding; and those involved in
Illegal Mining Activities shall not be considered for renewal of
the Mining Leases.
For this purpose, presently the inquiries are in progress at various
levels and foras including the investigation by the SIT Team, by the
Team of Chartered Accountants which have been set up by the State
Government and after the inquiry is complete or during the
course of the inquiry where it is found that any violations have
taken place, such persons shall not be considered for
Grant/Renewal of the Leases.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 73 of 101
106. Unfortunately, the undue haste in which the State acted gives the
impression that it was willing to sacrifice the rule of law for the benefit of
the mining lease holders and the explanation of satisfying the needs of some
sections of society for their livelihood (after keeping them in the lurch for
more than two years) was a mere fig leaf. The real intention of the second
renewal was to satisfy the avariciousness of the mining lease holders who
were motivated by profits to be made through the exploitation of natural
resources.
107. The undue haste also needs to be looked at in the context of the
statement made in the final paragraph of the Grant of Mining Leases Policy
to the effect that this Policy is an in-principle decision and would be notified
after it is vetted for legal requirements “from specific necessities as also
from financial view points”. In other words, the Grant of Mining Leases
Policy as published on 4th November, 2014 was not a final policy statement
but only an intent that would take final shape after due vetting. The Grant of
Mining Leases Policy was eventually published on 20th January, 2015 but it
was acted upon even before it was gazetted.
108. A partial explanation for this hurry, if we may venture to suggest, is
that the State of Goa was aware (like everybody else) on 17th November,
2014 if not earlier, of the policy of the Government of India to auction the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 74 of 101
grant of mining leases which policy was made available in the public
domain on that date and suggestions invited. It is on 17th November, 2014
that the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2014
was published on the website of the Ministry of Mines of the Government of
India. The policy of the Government of India proposed to introduce Section
10B by way of an amendment to the MMDR Act and the proposed
amendment made it very clear that if it were to be accepted, auction of
mining leases in respect of notified minerals (including iron ore) would
become a reality if not an obligation. It appears that to circumvent this rather
uncomfortable policy, the State pressed the accelerator on the renewal of
mining leases from December 2014 onward to benefit mining lease holders.
So much so that in respect of 5 mining leases, the State overstepped the law
and granted a second renewal in early January 2015 to some entities without
even waiting for any approval or deemed approval of the mining plan from
the Indian Bureau of Mines or any other authority.
109. This sequence of events acquires further significance when it is
recalled that an Ordinance to amend the MMDR Act was made known to the
general public on 5th January, 2015 and promulgated by the President on 12th
January, 2015 thereby mandating competitive bidding or auction for the
grant of mining leases. The State of Goa perhaps anticipated this in view of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 75 of 101
the publication of the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Act, 2014 and therefore hurried into the second renewal of
mining leases (notwithstanding the Grant of Mining Leases Policy) to defeat
the introduction of the auction process. In fact in the period from 5th January,
2015 to 12th January, 2015 the Government of Goa granted a second renewal
to as many as 56 mining leases and from 17th November, 2014 the State of
Goa granted a second renewal to as many as 75 mining leases. The sudden
spurt of renewal of mining leases is beyond comprehension. The judgment
and order of the High Court in Lithoferro cannot be used as a shield for
explaining the haste.
110. These facts must also be appreciated in the context that mining
operations were suspended in Goa with effect from 10th September, 2012
due to an order passed by the State of Goa. Therefore, mining operations
having been suspended for more than two years, the State could have
certainly waited for a few weeks more and taken an informed and reasoned
decision on granting a second renewal to mining leases – but waiting for a
few weeks could have led to an uncomfortable situation that would have
compelled the State of Goa to auction the mining leases, hence the haste.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 76 of 101
111. This Court held in Tata Iron & Steel Co. Ltd. v. Union of India33 that
for the purposes of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act34 the concept of „mineral
development‟ encompasses the concept of captive mining, an assessment of
its requirement by different industries as well as the principle of equitable
distribution (under Article 39(b) of the Constitution). It is not at all clear
from the records before us that the State had applied its mind to these and
other factors including the report of Justice Shah, the report of the EAC, the
absence of any value addition to the domestic industry and the degradation
of the environment as noted by the Expert Committee appointed by this
Court in concluding that a second renewal was „in the interests of mineral
development‟. Mere reliance on the acceptance or deemed acceptance of the
Indian Bureau of Mines is not enough, as imagined by the State of Goa. The
matter of „interests of mineral development‟ has to be considered holistically
and not in an isolationist manner.
33 (1996) 9 SCC 709
34 “8. Periods for which mining leases may be granted or renewed.- (1) The maximum period for which a mining
lease may be granted shall not exceed thirty years:
Provided that the minimum period for which any such mining lease may be granted shall not be less than twenty
years.
(2) A mining lease may be renewed for a period not exceeding twenty years.
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (2), if the State Government is of opinion that in the
interests of mineral development it is necessary so to do, it may, for reasons to be recorded, authorise the renewal
of a mining lease in respect of minerals not specified in Part A and Part B of the First Schedule for a further period
or periods not exceeding twenty years in each case.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (2) and sub-section (3), no mining lease granted in respect
of mineral specified in Part A or Part B of the First Schedule shall be renewed except with the previous approval of
the Central Government.”
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 77 of 101
112. In this context, it is also necessary to point out that the National
Mineral Policy 2008 provided that: “To maximise gains from the
comparative advantage which the country enjoys intra se mineral
development will be prioritised in terms of import substitution, value
addition and export, in that order.” Admittedly, iron ore is not extracted in
Goa for import substitution, or value addition for domestic industry, but only
for the last option, that is, export. Can it reasonably be said that the export
of iron ore is in the interest of mineral development? We were informed that
only one of the mining lease holders captively consumes the extracted iron
ore and it is evident from the Mineral Policy that despite mining operations
having closed down for some period in other States, iron ore from Goa was
not used in the domestic steel industry. Therefore, it is not at all clear who,
other than the mining lease holders making exports, was benefited by
resumption of mining operations in Goa through a second renewal.
113. The Mineral Policy clearly suggests that for a period of five years
between 2006 and 2012 the mining lease holders committed various
illegalities and irregularities in the mining process. This is an indication of
their exploitative and rapacious attitude having little or no concern for the
environment, the fragile ecology of Goa or even the health and well-being of
the average Goan. This irreparable damage was being caused by the mining
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 78 of 101
lease holders without any benefit to the domestic industry. Therefore, while
the mining lease holders may have contributed virtually nothing to the
domestic industry, they might have made considerable profits through
exports and might have also benefited the foreign exchange reserves of the
country, but the real-time damage to the quality of health and life of the
average Goan and damage to the environment and ecology of Goa is
nevertheless incalculable or at least considerable – and export benefits
cannot be weighed against health or the environment.
114. What is unfortunate about the entire commercial activity of the mining
lease holders is that there was no social or public purpose attached to the
mining operations. There was one and only one objective behind the mining
activity and that was profit maximization. The renewal of the mining leases
would give considerable profits to the mining lease holders well beyond the
benefits that could accrue to the State or to the average resident of Goa. It
was observed by Justice Khehar in Natural Resources Allocation that
material resources of the country should not be dissipated free of cost or at a
consideration lower than their actual worth. This was not kept in mind and
mining leases were renewed for a small payment of stamp duty and royalty.
It is therefore clear that the considerations that weighed with the State were
not for the people of Goa but were for the mining lease holders. This
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 79 of 101
certainly cannot be described as being “in the interests of mineral
development.”
115. With the mining lease holders violating virtually every applicable law
or legal requirement, it is clear that the rule of law was not their concern.
The list of violations and their variety was documented by the EAC and it
makes for some very sad reading. To make matters worse, it was clearly
mentioned in the Grant of Mining Leases Policy that a Special Investigating
Team and a team of Chartered Accountants would look into all the
violations but the State chose not to wait for any of the reports. There is no
explanation for this.
116. In this background, there is little to suggest that the State considered
the requirements of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act in that the interests of
mineral development was secondary while granting the second renewal of
mining leases. The entire exercise undertaken by the State was a hasty
charade, regardless of violations of the law by the mining lease holders,
without any benefit to the Indian industry and without any concern for the
health of the average Goan.
117. The undue haste with which the State granted the second renewal of
mining leases particularly after the amendments proposed to the MMDR Act
were placed in the public domain by the Government of India (relating to the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 80 of 101
auction of mining leases) is a clear indication that the decision of the State
was not based on relevant material and not necessarily triggered by the
interests of mineral development. The very large number of renewals
granted over a comparatively brief period is a clear indication that the State
did not have „mineral development‟ in mind but had some other nonstatutory
interests while taking its decision to grant a second renewal to the
mining leases. The haste with which the State took its decision also needs to
be understood in the background of the fact that mining had been suspended
by the State in September 2012 that is more than two years prior to the grant
of second renewals. The urgency suddenly exhibited by the State therefore
seems to be make-believe and motivated rather than genuine.
118. Facts from the record also disclose some interesting information
regarding the second renewal of mining leases. The table below indicates
that except 13 mining leases, all the others were renewed after publication of
the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 2014 on
17th November, 2014. The table is given below and is self explanatory:
Period Mining leases renewed
Between 5-17 November, 2014 13
Between 10 December, 2014 and 2 January,
2015
19
Between 5-12 January, 2015 56
Total 88
On 12 January, 2015 31
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 81 of 101
119. Of the 13 mining leases renewed in November 2014, it is found that
according to the State of Goa all of them are Category-I violators (except
Geetabala M.N. Parulekar who is a Category–II violator). However, it was
pointed out by learned counsel appearing on behalf of Goa Foundation that
the report of the Vishwanath Anand EAC indicates that a recommendation
was made to revoke the environmental clearance in respect of 6 mining
lease holders; additionally, none of the mining lease holders had approval
from the National Board for Wildlife (where required); all of them (except
2) had mined in excess of the permissible limit under the environmental
clearance; all of them had indulged in dump mining; some of them were
guilty of encroachments; in almost every case the mining activity intersected
ground water level and none of the mining lease holders had permission for
ground water withdrawal. These cannot be described as minor violations but
were actually multiple violations in almost all cases. How could the State
of Goa and MoEF overlook these recommendations and multiple violations?
120. It may be recalled that the Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 came into force on 12th January,
2015 and on that day as many as 31 mining leases were renewed. In respect
of 5 mining leases renewed in January, 2015 the report from the Indian
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 82 of 101
Bureau of Mines was called for in January, 2015 itself and the mining leases
were renewed without receipt of the report from the Indian Bureau of Mines
and before expiry of the mandatory period for submitting the report in terms
of the second proviso to Rule 24A(3) of the Mineral Concession Rules,
1960. In other words, without even receipt of any report from the Indian
Bureau of Mines and even before the expiry of the statutory waiting period,
the State of Goa renewed some mining leases. This is patently illegal.
121. We were informed by the learned Additional Solicitor General that of
the 88 mining leases that were renewed, 38 of them are not working for a
variety of reasons – making their renewal an empty exercise.
122. These facts are mentioned in the context of the undue haste shown by
the State of Goa in granting a second renewal to the mining leases keeping
the following dates in mind:
17th November, 2014 – The draft Mines and Minerals (Development
and Regulation) Act, 2014 was uploaded on the website of the
Ministry of Mines of the Government of India.
5
th January, 2015 – Approval of the Mines and Minerals
(Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 by the
Cabinet of the Government of India became public knowledge.
12th January, 2015 – President of India promulgated the Mines and
Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance,
2015.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 83 of 101
123. It is possible that the State did have some serious governance issues to
contend with as mentioned in the Grant of Mining Leases Policy, namely,
since iron ore mining had been suspended for more than two years, the State
faced a lack of funds resulting in its having difficulty in undertaking
infrastructure projects and other activities. The State had also to contend
with the adverse effects faced by a large population that was directly or
indirectly dependent on the mining sector. Additionally, the transport sector
was affected as well as barges used for transport through rivers from jetties.
The stoppage of mining operations therefore affected several categories of
stakeholders including small business or small commercial ventures and
workers/labour. The Grant of Mining Leases Policy also noted that there
was a tremendous loss of foreign exchange of about $8 billion through
exports and more than Rs. 850 crores towards loans/advances on the mining
sector for a variety of activities as well as about Rs. 1000 crores towards
housing, business and other loans. Over all there was a slump in economic
activity which also had an impact on the education sector etc.
124. The State has projected virtual chaos (which could be an
exaggeration) but that is why we have left open the issue of arbitrariness of
the policy decision. Nevertheless the State is bound by the law, however
uncomfortable it might be in granting a second renewal in terms of Section
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 84 of 101
8(3) of the MMDR Act. Therefore, on an overall consideration of all aspects
of the case, we are of opinion that the decision of the State of Goa to quickly
renew the mining leases while ostensibly complying with the requirements
of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act and thereby jettisoning the rule of law
was unjustified.
Whether fresh environmental clearances were required to be obtained
by the mining lease holders?
125. The question whether the mining lease holders required fresh
environmental clearances arises in the context of paragraph 82 of the
decision rendered in Goa Foundation quoted above. It must be stated that
some mining lease holders had environmental clearances under EIA 1994
while others under EIA 2006. Notwithstanding this, since we have held that
fresh mining leases were required to be granted, it follows that fresh
environmental clearance is required to be obtained by those who are granted
a fresh mining lease.
126. That apart, the materials before the Court while deciding Goa
Foundation included the report of the Justice Shah Commission, the report
of the EAC and the report of the Expert Committee constituted by the Court
by orders dated 11th November, 2013 and 18th November, 2013. On a
combined reading of the material before it, the Court took a broad view that
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 85 of 101
large-scale mining of iron ore led to several adverse impacts including those
related to the environment, ecology and health of the people of Goa and that
these illegalities and irregularities were committed by almost all (if not all)
mining lease holders as reported by the EAC. The Court also accepted the
view of the Expert Committee that the ecology of Goa was being degraded
through indiscriminate mining and placed a cap on the annual excavation of
iron ore. It was noted that mining by the lessees in Goa after 22nd November,
2007 was illegal and that mining operations were suspended by the State of
Goa on 10th September, 2012 and environmental clearances granted to the
mines were kept in abeyance by the MoEF on 14th September, 2012.
Considering all this, as well as the law laid down in Goa Foundation to the
effect that there is no automatic second renewal of a mining lease but that a
second renewal must be granted in accordance with the provisions of Section
8(3) of the MMDR Act, the Court used the expression “grant fresh
environmental clearances for mining projects” in the passage referred to
above.
127. We have already adverted to the report of the EAC. As far as the
Expert Committee set up by the Court is concerned, it had furnished an
Interim Report dated 14th March, 2014 in which it noted large-scale
degradation of the environment and recommended placing an annual cap
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 86 of 101
between 20 and 27.5 million tonnes on the extraction of iron ore in Goa. The
Expert Committee noted the following (which makes for some very
depressing reading):
“The production of iron ore has jumped from 14.6 million tons in
1941 to 41.17 million tons in 2010-2011. In 1980s the production
was about 10 MT/annum. The quantum jump in iron ore
production in Goa was essentially due to steep rise in exports of
fines and other low grade ore of 42% Fe content to China. This
has led to massive negative impacts on all ecosystems leading to
enhanced air, water, and soil pollution affecting quality of life
across Goa. This is evident by three important reports i.e. (i)
Areawise Environmental Quality Management (AEQM) Plan for the
Mining belt of Goa by Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi
and Goa (1997) and it was submitted to the Directorate of Planning,
Statistics, and Evaluation, Government of Goa, (ii) Environmental
and Social Performance Indicators and Sustainability Markers in
Minerals Development Reporting Progress towards Improved
Ecosystem Health and Human Well-being, Phase III by TERI and
International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada (2006)
and (iii) the Regional Environmental Impact Study of Iron Ore
Mining in Goa region sponsored by MoEF, New Delhi (2014) by
Indian School of Mines. Besides the above three main reports, a
number of scientific research papers on the impact of iron ore
mining on the environment and ecology of diverse ecosystems were
published by scientists working at Goa University and NIO.
These reports and publications substantiate that the mining,
particularly the enhanced level of annual production
contributed to adverse impacts on the ecological systems, socioeconomics
of Goa and health of people of Goa leading to loss of
ecological integrity. This is due to enhanced levels of pollutants,
particularly RSPM and SPM, sedimentation of materials from dumps
and iron ore in rivers, estuaries and shallow depth (20 m) of sea
water, agricultural fields, high concentration of Fe and Mn in surface
waters and their bioaccumulation.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 87 of 101
128. Faced with this material evidence before it, the Court took the view in
Goa Foundation that fresh environmental clearances must be obtained.
Unfortunately however, the State of Goa was more concerned with earning
revenue rather than the health of the people of Goa or enforcing the rule of
law and therefore gave a complete go-bye to the directions of this Court and
to the concerns of the citizens of Goa and requested the MoEF to lift the
abeyance on the environmental clearances.
129. Acting on the request made by the State of Goa by letters dated 7th
January, 2015 and 5th February, 2015, the MoEF passed three orders on 20th
March, 2015. We have already adverted to the contents of the orders passed
on 20th March, 2015.
130. The first order of 20th March, 2015 is essentially a communication
documenting the variety of illegalities and irregularities committed by the
mining lease holders and that the Government of India would be referring
the cases for appropriate action and also requesting the Principal Secretary,
Environment in the Government of Goa to take necessary action.
131. The second order of 20th March, 2015 is an Office Memorandum to
the effect that a project proponent will not be required to obtain a fresh
environmental clearance at the time of renewal of the mining lease. This is
misleading information and contrary to the decision of this Court in M.C.
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 88 of 101
Mehta v. Union of India35 as well as the decision rendered in Common
Cause v. Union of India.
36
132. It was held in Ambica Quarry Works v. State of Gujarat37, Rural
Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P.38 and State of M.P. v.
Krishnadas Tikaram39 (which decisions were followed in M.C. Mehta) that
the renewal of a lease, whether under the provisions of the Forest
(Conservation) Act, 1980 or otherwise cannot be granted without the lease
holder complying with the necessary statutory requirements particularly
since the grant of renewal is a fresh grant and must be consistent with law.
The principle of compliance with statutory provisions at the stage of renewal
of a lease was re-affirmed in Common Cause in paragraphs 105 and 106 of
the Report. In paragraph 188(2) of the Report it was categorically held as
follows:
“(2) The renewal of a mining lease after 27-1-1994 will require an
EC even if there is no expansion or modernisation activity or any
increase in the pollution load.”
133. The third order of 20th March, 2015 is extremely cryptic in the matter
of lifting the abeyance order of 14th September, 2012 on environmental
35 (2004)12 SCC 118
36 (2017) 9 SCC 499
37 (1987) 1 SCC 213
38 1989 Supp (1) SCC 504
39 1995 Supp (1) SCC 587
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 89 of 101
clearances. While dealing with 35 mining leases for which environmental
clearance had been granted under EIA 1994 and 37 mining leases for which
environmental clearance had been granted under EIA 2006, the following is
stated:
“It has been decided in the Ministry that the EC issued under 1994
notification in case they are valid and subsisting would not require
fresh EC at the time of renewal (O.M. L-11011/15/2012-IA-II (M)
dated 20.3.2015. Therefore it has been decided to lift abeyance on
the 72 cases of which 35 cases had been granted EC under the
provisions of EIA notification 1994 and 37 cases had been granted
EC under EIA notification 2006.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
134. As mentioned above and as held in M.C. Mehta and Common Cause,
the renewal of a lease after 27th January, 1994 would require an
environmental clearance. Therefore, a mining lease holder having a valid
environmental clearance obtained under EIA 1994 would still require a fresh
environmental clearance for renewal of the mining lease in 2014-2015 as the
case may be. That being so there is no doubt at all that the 35 cases referred
to in the third order of 20th March, 2015 who had an environmental
clearance under EIA 1994 did require a fresh environmental clearance at the
time of renewal of the mining lease. Since they did not have such a fresh
environmental clearance the renewal of these 35 mining leases is clearly
bad in law. Moreover, as held in M.C. Mehta and Common Cause the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 90 of 101
validity of an environmental clearance granted under EIA 1994 is only for
five years. Therefore all environmental clearances granted under EIA 1994
had lost their validity before 2015, EIA 1994 having been replaced by EIA
2006.
135. As regards the 37 mining leases that had obtained environmental
clearance under EIA 2006, since the validity of the environmental clearance
is for the estimated project life or a maximum of 30 years in terms of
paragraph 9 of EIA 2006 therefore no violation can be found on the ground
of validity for the time period. To this limited extent, no interference is
necessary at this stage in respect of these 37 mining leases. We make it
clear, however, that this is subject to our conclusion that fresh mining leases
were required to be granted by the State of Goa. Consequently, a mining
lease holder obtaining a fresh mining lease would require a fresh
environmental clearance in terms of EIA 2006.
136. What is disturbing is that notwithstanding several and various
violations, the MoEF granted environmental clearance to 72 mining leases.
It seems to us that the MoEF acted without any application of mind in lifting
the order placing all the environmental clearances in abeyance. Since the
entire exercise carried out by the MoEF on 20th March, 2015 was
mechanical, at the behest of the State of Goa, without due application of
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 91 of 101
mind, without considering the multiple illegalities and irregularities
committed by the mining lease holders or passing on the buck to the State of
Goa and without considering relevant material such as the report of the EAC
and the Expert Committee appointed by this Court, the exercise of lifting the
abeyance order on 20th March, 2015 by the MoEF must be held void and as
directed by the Court in Goa Foundation all the mining lease holders must
obtain fresh environmental clearance for their mining project.
137. We were informed by the learned Additional Solicitor General that
show cause notices have now been issued to some mining lease holders
demanding huge amounts - some running into hundreds of crores of rupees
towards value of ore extracted in excess of the environmental clearance.
We were handed over some sample show cause notices (about 12) issued in
September and October 2017 and the figures are quite staggering – the
demand raised being about Rs. 1500 crores! Similarly, from the Summary
of Mining Audit Report submitted by the auditors (and handed over to us by
the learned Additional Solicitor General – for the period July 2016 to
December 2016) the amount demanded (including interest) by the State of
Goa from the mining lease holders through show cause notices issued is
about Rs. 1500 crores! And without making any serious attempt to recover
such huge amounts, the State of Goa has granted second renewal of mining
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 92 of 101
leases and the MoEF played ball by lifting the abeyance order in respect of
the environment clearances. The inferences that can be drawn are quite
obvious.
138. We must emphasise that issues impacting society are required to be
looked at holistically and not in a disaggregated manner. An overall
perspective is necessary on such issues including issues that impact on the
environment and the people of a community or a region or the State. It is
for this reason that it is necessary to look at them broadly otherwise if that
broader perspective is lost everyone will be a loser and no one will be a real
beneficiary. One or two violations here and there may be wished away as
inconsequential, but multiple violations by several persons can result in
serious problems. As the novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand had said: We
can evade reality, but we cannot evade the consequences of evading reality.
Therefore, there is no doubt that the Mineral Policy, the Grant of Mining
Leases Policy, the amendment to the MMDR Act, the report of the EAC and
the report of the Expert Committee must be considered in the larger context
of constitutionalism, the rule of law, environmental jurisprudence as well as
the fundamental right of the people of Goa to have clean air and
protection of the fragile ecology. Governance cannot and should not be
carried out de hors the interests of the people and some uncomfortable
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 93 of 101
decisions may be inevitable for balancing the equities.
139. Finally, a controversy (wholly unnecessary in our view) was raised
with regard to the period of validity of the environmental clearance granted
under EIA 1994. Firstly, in the view that we have taken, the validity period
of an environmental clearance under EIA 1994 is academic since a fresh
environmental clearance was necessary at the time of renewal of a lease.
Secondly, the period of validity of an environmental clearance was
considered in M.C. Mehta and it was clearly held that it is valid for 5 years
only. In paragraph 77 of the Report it was observed:
“We are unable to accept the contention that the notification dated
27-1-1994 would not apply to leases which come up for
consideration for renewal after issue of the notification. The
notification mandates that the mining operation shall not be
undertaken in any part of India unless environmental clearance by
the Central Government has been accorded. The clearance under
the notification is valid for a period of five years. In none of the
leases the requirements of the notification were complied with either
at the stage of initial grant of the mining lease or at the stage of
renewal. Some of the leases were fresh leases granted after issue of
the notification. Some were cases of renewal. No mining operation
can commence without obtaining environmental impact assessment
in terms of the notification.” [Emphasis supplied by us].
A similar view was expressed in paragraph 87 in Common Cause. Any
contrary view expressed in any notification issued by MoEF (including the
notification of 15th January, 2016) cannot overrule decisions of this Court
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 94 of 101
and is void to the extent that it does so.
140. It was submitted that all relevant notifications on the subject had not
been placed before the Court and hence an erroneous conclusion was arrived
at with respect to EIA 1994. We propose to deal with the notifications
placed before us.
141. The notification of 27th January, 1994 (EIA 1994) deals with site
clearance in paragraph 2.II(d). This provides, inter alia, that site clearance
will be granted for a mining operation by the Central Government and that
site clearance will be valid for a period of five years for commencing the
operation or mining. Paragraphs 2.III(a) and 2.III(c) of the notification deal
with the procedure for obtaining environmental clearance, but do not provide
for the validity period of the environmental clearance.
142. A notification of 4th May, 1994 refers to the notification of 27th
January, 1994 and substitutes paragraph 2.III(c) therein and provides that the
environmental clearance “shall be valid for a period of five years from
commencement of the construction or operation.” What this provides,
therefore, is that if environmental clearance is granted on a particular date
and the mining operation starts on a later date, then the validity of the
environmental clearance commences from the later date and is valid for five
years from that date. This was reiterated in the notification of 10th April,
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 95 of 101
1997.
143. The validity of an environmental clearance is specifically provided for
in EIA 2006 in paragraph 9 thereof. As far as we are concerned, it provides
that in respect of mining operations, the environmental clearance would be
valid for the “project life as estimated by Expert Appraisal Committee or
State Level Expert Appraisal Committee subject to a maximum of thirty
years for mining projects….”.
144. For no apparent reason and after EIA 2006, the issue of the validity of
an environmental clearance granted under EIA 1994 was raked up and a
notification was issued by the MoEF on 21st August, 2013 in which it was
noted that the notification of 4th May, 1994 provided that “the clearance
granted shall be valid for a period of five years from commencement of the
construction or operation”. Another notification of 21st August, 2013 goes
on to say that the intent of the Central Government has been and has always
been that the validity of the environmental clearance is for five years “for”
commencement of the construction or operation and not that the
environment clearance is only for five years “from” the commencement of
construction or operation. Therefore, the Central Government clarified in the
notification of 21st August, 2013 that the expression “for a period of five
years” shall mean “for a period of five years for commencement of the
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 96 of 101
construction or operation and not five years from commencement of the
construction or operation.” We do not see how this controversy really arises
or its relevance to the present case, but we refer to it since submissions were
made to explain the distinction between “for” five years and “from” five
years in respect of the validity of an environmental clearance.
145. It is perhaps sought to be contended that if environmental clearance is
granted and mining operations commence within the five year period, then
the environmental clearance under EIA 1994 is valid till the project or the
mining lease period is over. We cannot see how such an inference can be
drawn. Moreover, this submission overlooks the decisions in M.C. Mehta
and Common Cause which accept the view that the validity of an
environmental clearance granted under EIA 1994 is only five years as also
the view that a valid environmental clearance is necessary for the renewal of
a mining lease. No notification of the MoEF can overrule decisions of this
Court. As far as EIA 2006 is concerned this submission is academic and
not relevant since paragraph 9 of EIA 2006 provides that the environmental
clearance would be valid for the estimated project life subject to a maximum
of 30 years.
146. Learned counsel for the mining lease holders also relied upon a
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 97 of 101
decision of the Delhi High Court in S. N. Mohanty v. Union of India40 to
contend that notwithstanding a notification issued by MoEF on 4th April,
2011 it was not obligatory for a mining lease holder to obtain a fresh
environmental clearance at the time of renewal of a lease, if the
environmental clearance was subsisting. In that case, the petitioner had an
environmental clearance obtained under EIA 2006 on 15th January, 2007 and
the first renewal of the mining lease was due on 2nd April, 2012. In that
context, it was submitted that it was not necessary for the petitioner to obtain
environmental clearance for renewal of the mining lease. The Delhi High
Court took the view that: “… if a person has a valid and subsisting EC
[environmental clearance] at the point of time he seeks a renewal of the
mining lease, he would still be required to obtain another EC prior to the
grant of renewal by the respondents. That, in our view, is not the intent and
purport of the Supreme Court directions in M.C. Mehta.” This question
does not arise in the context of EIA 1994.
147. One final submission before us was that these cases be referred to a
Bench of 9 learned judges since the constitutional validity of the Goa,
Daman & Diu Mining Concessions (Abolition & Declaration of Mining
Leases) Act, 1987 was under challenge in some cases and the decision in
40 2012 SCC OnLine Del 4000
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 98 of 101
those cases would perhaps render the present proceedings infructuous. In
some of these pending cases, this Court had passed an order on 29th October,
2002 to await the decision of 9 learned judges in Property Owners’
Association v. State of Maharashtra.
41
We are not at all inclined to accept
this request and mention it only to reject it.
Correctness of the decision of the High Court in Lithoferro
148. As far as the SLPs are concerned (SLP (C) No. 32138 of 2015 and
SLP (C) Nos. 32699-32727 of 2015) we set aside the judgment and order
dated 13th August, 2014 of the High Court in view of our conclusion that the
State of Goa was required to grant fresh licences in terms of the decision of
this Court in Goa Foundation. The High Court proceeded on the erroneous
basis that it could direct the State of Goa to grant a second renewal of the
mining leases notwithstanding the direction in Goa Foundation.
Conclusions and directions
149. In view of our discussion, we arrive at the following conclusions:
1. As a result of the decision, declaration and directions of this
Court in Goa Foundation, the State of Goa was obliged to
grant fresh mining leases in accordance with law and not
second renewals to the mining lease holders.
41 (2013) 7 SCC 522 dated 20th February, 2002
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 99 of 101
2. The State of Goa was not under any constitutional obligation to
grant fresh mining leases through the process of competitive
bidding or auction.
3. The second renewal of the mining leases granted by the State of
Goa was unduly hasty, without taking all relevant material into
consideration and ignoring available relevant material and
therefore not in the interests of mineral development. The
decision was taken only to augment the revenues of the State
which is outside the purview of Section 8(3) of the MMDR Act.
The second renewal of the mining leases granted by the State of
Goa is liable to be set aside and is quashed.
4. The Ministry of Environment and Forest was obliged to grant
fresh environmental clearances in respect of fresh grant of
mining leases in accordance with law and the decision of this
Court in Goa Foundation and not merely lift the abeyance
order of 14th September, 2012.
5. The decision of the Bombay High Court in Lithoferro v. State
of Goa (and batch) giving directions different from those given
by this Court in Goa Foundation is set aside.
6. The mining lease holders who have been granted the second
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 100 of 101
renewal in violation of the decision and directions of this Court
in Goa Foundation are given time to manage their affairs and
may continue their mining operations till 15th March, 2018.
However, they are directed to stop all mining operations with
effect from 16th March, 2018 until fresh mining leases (not
fresh renewals or other renewals) are granted and fresh
environmental clearances are granted.
7. The State of Goa should take all necessary steps to grant fresh
mining leases in accordance with the provisions of the Mines
and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957. The
Ministry of Environment and Forest should also take all
necessary steps to grant fresh environmental clearances to those
who are successful in obtaining fresh mining leases. The
exercise should be completed by the State of Goa and the
Ministry of Environment and Forest as early as reasonably
practicable.
8. The State of Goa will take all necessary steps to ensure that the
Special Investigation Team and the team of Chartered
Accountants constituted pursuant to the Goa Grant of Mining
Leases Policy 2014 give their report at the earliest and the State
S.L.P. (C) No. 32138 of 2015 etc. Page 101 of 101
of Goa should implement the reports at the earliest, unless there
are very good reasons for rejecting them.
9. The State of Goa will take all necessary steps to expedite
recovery of the amounts said to be due from the mining lease
holders pursuant to the show cause notices issued to them and
pursuant to other reports available with the State of Goa
including the report of Special Investigation Team and the team
of Chartered Accountants.
150. The writ petitions and SLPs are disposed of in accordance with the
above conclusions and directions.
...……………………J
(Madan B. Lokur)
..…………………....J
New Delhi; (Deepak Gupta)
February 7, 2018
