Panaji, Mar 30 (TOI): The high court of Bombay at Goa on Thursday declined from granting relief to mining companies and traders seeking to modify its interim order stopping transportation of ore.
Mining companies told the court that several tonnes of ore are in the process of transportation and that the high court stopping transportation of ore has caused them to suffer heavy losses. Applicants Vedanta Ltd, V M Salgaocar and Bro, Fomento Resources Pvt Ltd, Ambar Timblo and Mormugao Port Trust sought modification of the court's Wednesday order on various grounds.
Following a public interest litigation filed by Goa Foundation, the high court on Wednesday, in an interim order, stopped transportation of ore related to operations of the 88 lease holders whose renewals were cancelled by the Supreme Court in February 2018.
But the court on Thursday allowed the applications to be joined as intervenors in the PIL by Goa Foundation.
A division bench of Justices N M Jamdar and Prithviraj Chavan rejected applications by mining companies and traders and advanced the hearing of the PIL from April 18 to April 11.
One of the applicant mining companies said it had ore stocks of 1.6 million tonnes outside lease areas, for which it has also paid royalty prior to March 3, 2015.
It also claimed that it had a vessel at MPT, Cape Armenia, which was loading, and the demurrage involved was Rs 11 lakh per day.
Another company said it had stacked 5,79,446 MT of ore at jetties and plots for over a six-month period and that it had also paid royalty and made contributions to District Mineral Fund Foundation (DMFF) and Iron Ore Permanent Fund.
Stating that it was a trader and therefore not part of the SC order, one mining company said its ore at Maina jetty was to the tune of 34,267 MT, that at Capxem jetty was 22,220 MT, that at Sanvordem jetty was 1,103 MT and that at Sircaim jetty was 10,117 MT.
This entire quantity of 67,707 MT was transported, according to it, before March 15, while the loading of its vessel, MV Bluemoon had commenced on March 27 before it was stopped abruptly on March 28.
The barges with ore are now floating on the high seas and are unable to unload. Demurrage works out to Rs 12 lakh per day, they said.
Goa Mineral Ore Exporters Union (GMOEA) in a statement on Thursday said, "We are awaiting today's order, after which we will evaluate it with respect to the Supreme Court order, which is our principal order."