The Union government’s announcement to resume mining in Bharat Gold Mines Ltd. (BGML) at Kolar Gold Fields has been received cautiously by the workers here, who have been fighting for its revival for the past one-and-a-half decades.
Since 2001, when the mines were closed citing low gold prices and mounting losses due to high operational cost, the unions have been fighting legal battle for its revival.
“This (the announcement) is what we have been demanding and fighting for a long time it,” said the CITU-affiliated BGML Employees’ Union president V.J.K. Nair. The Centre should take necessary steps to protect the interests of the workers and their families by resuming mining at the earliest, he said cautiously.
Balwinder Kumar, Secretary, Union Department of Mining and Geology in New Delhi said on Wednesday that mining at BGML would be resumed while a gold mine each in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh would be auctioned.
Mr. Nair said, “We would like to know the concrete plans that have been chalked out by the government for the revival.” K.M. Diwakaran, president of Bharat Gold Mines All-Employees Industrial Cooperative Society, which had also challenged the Karnataka High Court order, welcomed the Centre’s stand now. “It is the duty of the Centre to revive it as it was responsible for the closure,” Mr. Diwakaran said.
KGF was once considered one of the largest gold fields in India and mining used to be carried out for centuries. In 1956, it was nationalised, and in 1972, its operations were handed over to BGML.
According to estimates, even after 120 years of mining, the value runs into a couple of thousand crore rupees, a senior government official said. It is said to have 200 tonne of gold ore still. ( With inputs from PTI )
LOOKING BACK
The mines closed in 2001
Workers move High Court seeking directive to govt to for reopening the mine
The High Court in February 2010 orders revival of the mine
The court also asked the Union govt to explore possibilities of running the mines on its own in view of high rate for gold, ruling out the option of tendering
The Supreme Court in July 2013 set aside the high court order and allowed global tendering to assess the value of BGML property
