Bhubaneswar: Applying the principles of the recent supreme court order in case of iron ore mines in the state, the Odisha government Wednesday slapped a penalty of Rs 20,169 on Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (Mcl) over alleged excess mining and violation of environmental laws. The apex court has directed the state to impose a 100% penalty on lessees for excess mining and violation of environment norms .
Serving show cause notice on Mcl, the state steel & mining department has asked respond with 30 days as to why the penalty would not be realized.
The state steel & mines department has in September 2017 issued notices to as many as 152 iron ore mine owners for excess mining and flouting environment laws. As per the court order, the leaseholders are required to pay the fine by December 31,2017.
