SC issues notice to Centre, Orissa government and Posco

New Delhi, Dec 6 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday issued
notice to the Centre, Orissa government and South Korean steel
major Posco on the petition filed by Geomin Minerals &
Marketing Limited, a mine and mineral company, challenging the
Orissa High Court order.
Geomin Minerals & Marketing Limited has challenged the
order of Orissa High Court which has quashed the notification
issued by the state government.
The notification was for grant of prospective licenses
for iron ore mining in over 2,500 hectares in the Khandadhar
hills in Sundergarh district of the eastern Indian state of
Orissa.
A bench of justices R V Raveendran and A K Patnaik
directed to maintain status quo as of Monday till further
hearing.
Earlier, in this issue, the state government had also
challenged the order of the High Court, which on July 14 this
year, had set aside the state government's decision to allot
iron ore licence in Sundergarh district to Posco.
The high court's order came on the petition filed by
Geomin Minerals, which had contended that it had applied for
the licence for Khandadhar iron ore mines much before Posco.
The Orissa government had contended before the apex court
that the high court could not have quashed the state
governments grant of licence to Posco as it was under section
11 (5) of Mines And Minerals (Development And Regulation) Act,
1957.
It had further contended that Section 11 (5) gives
power to the state government to "grant a reconnaissance
permit, prospecting license or mining lease, as the case may
be, to an applicant whose application was received later in
preference to an applicant whose application was received
earlier."
The state government in January 2009 had recommended
Posco to the Central government for granting prospective
licence for Khandadhar iron ore reserves.
Geomin challenged the state government decision. PTI KRH
AVT


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