Bhubaneswar: In an attempt to bring a more extensive legal network to prevent illegal mining and regulate the lawful trading, storage, and movement of minerals, the state Cabinet led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Friday nodded the proposal to enact a new rule by repealing the old one framed 18 years back. For administrative convenience, it has been decided by the government to enact the Odisha Minerals (Prevention of Illegal Mining and Regulation of Trading, Transportation & Storage) Rules, 2025 by repealing the existing Odisha Minerals (Prevention of Theft Smuggling and Illegal Mining and Regulation of Possession and Storage, Trading and Transportation), Rules 2007 for purpose of prevention of theft, smuggling and illegal mining and to regulate the possession, storage, trading and transportation of minerals in the State.
The Cabinet meeting, chaired by the Chief Minister, approved a total of 12 proposals of nine departments, Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja said. The state has decided to introduce the e-lottery system for allotment of quarries of minor minerals like stones, sand on lease in the state, Ahuja said. This new system would expedite the allotment and operationalisation of the minor mineral sources and mitigate the supply-demand gap with a reasonable cost of minor minerals, he said. Enforcement and prevention of illegal mining have also been taken care of.
Maximum rate capping provision for minor minerals is made in the rule, the chief secretary said, adding that from now on, one can get a lease of a maximum of three minor mineral quarries in a district and five in the entire state. The government has been empowered under the new rule to take 40 per cent of a minor mineral block and sell it to the public in case of shortage, so that no lease holder can have a monopoly in the market, he stated. The Cabinet also approved a policy aimed at positioning the state as a hub for Global Capability Centres (GCCs) by offering a comprehensive set of incentives. The policy aims to attract leading multinational corporations to establish and expand their GCCs in the state by offering a robust ecosystem of world-class infrastructure, skilled talent, and progressive incentives, he said.
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