Sandur forest mining: Kumaraswamy says K'taka govt okayed it before his union ministry approved it
Bengaluru, Jun 18: Union Minister for Steel and Heavy Industries H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday claimed he was not the one who decided to allow mining in about 404 hectares of forest area in Sandur in Ballari district in Karnataka, and that the state government had approved the project much earlier.
He was reacting to reports expressing concerns that 99,000 trees would be felled if the Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited (KIOCL) is permitted to mine iron ore in Devadari forest area of Sandur taluk.
The union minister had recently given his approval to KIOCL to operationalise the Devadari Iron Ore Mine.
Noting that the Devadari project is on Prime Minister's 100-day agenda, Kumaraswamy instructed officials to work diligently in this regard and said that mining should be started as soon as possible.
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"I did not sign for deforestation," he claimed. "This decision has been taken with the intention that there should be steel production in the state and more and more jobs should be created for our youth. This step has been taken with the aim of contributing more to the GDP growth as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' wish."
Stating that propaganda is being spread to create anxiety among the people, Kumaraswamy said that in 2019, the state government had given permission for mining in an area of 404 hectares for the Devadari mining project, and later, the Union Environment Ministry also gave permission.
"But, there have been reports that Kumaraswamy has signed the plan to give permission for mining, and damage will be caused to forest and biodiversity in Devadari region. There are reports that 99,000 trees will be affected," he noted.
Kumaraswamy, who held a meeting with KIOCL officers, claimed there is "no need to worry" about the mining project, as KIOCL will plant an “alternative” forest in an area of 808 hectares at a cost of around Rs 194 crore before starting the ore extraction work.
The minister said that the forest department has been paid for it. He also claimed that "all precautionary measures have been taken so as not to disturb the biodiversity."
In a separate development, he also discussed with officials about the revival of Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant (VISP) at Bhadravati in Shivamogga district.
He instructed the officials to think about it. “It was a good factory, a landmark of Karnataka. Think about saving it," he said.
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UDF leaders see local body poll trends as pointer to 2026 Assembly elections in Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Buoyed by the strong performance of the Congress-led UDF in the local body polls, KPCC president Sunny Joseph said on Saturday that the front's results indicated the people had rejected the LDF government.
According to early trends, the UDF was leading in more grama panchayats, block panchayats, municipalities and corporations than the LDF.
The local body polls were held in two phases in the state earlier this week.
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Speaking to reporters here, Joseph said the people of Kerala had extended their support to the UDF.
"We could expose the LDF government’s anti-people stance and the people understood it. The LDF’s fake propaganda was rejected by the people. The UDF is moving towards a historic victory," he said.
He said a united effort, proper preparations, good candidate selection and hard work had resulted in the Congress and the UDF’s victory in the elections.
Asked about the prospects in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Joseph said the party was studying the matter and would comment later.
LDF convenor T P Ramakrishnan said the results would be closely examined.
According to him, the government had done everything possible for the people.
"Why such a verdict happened will be examined at the micro level. People’s opinion will be considered and further steps will be taken," he said.
He added that decisions would be taken after analysing the results. "If any corrective measures are required, we will initiate them and move forward," he said.
AICC leader K C Venugopal said the results showed that people had begun ousting those who, he alleged, were responsible for the loss of gold at Lord Ayyappa’s temple.
"This trend will continue in the Assembly elections as well. It is an indication that the people are ready to bring down the LDF government," he said.
Venugopal said the UDF had registered victories even in CPI(M) and LDF strongholds.
"I congratulate all UDF workers for their hard work. Congress workers and leaders worked unitedly," he said.
Referring to remarks made by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan against the Congress on polling day, Venugopal said the voters had responded through the verdict.
"I do not know whether the chief minister understands that the people are against him. Otherwise, he does not know the sentiment of the people. The state government cannot move an inch further," he said.
He said the results indicated a strong comeback for the UDF in Kerala.
Asked whether the Sabarimala gold loss issue had affected the LDF in the local polls, Venugopal said the CM and the CPI(M) state secretary did not take the issue seriously.
"We took a strong stand on the matter. The BJP played a foul game in it," he alleged.
On the BJP's role in the local body elections, Venugopal alleged that the party operated with the CPI(M) 's tacit support.
"The CPI(M) supported the central government on issues such as PM-SHRI, labour codes and corruption in national highway construction. The CPI(M) is facing ideological decline, and the state government’s policies are against the party’s own decisions," he said.
Meanwhile, LDF ally Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K Mani said the party could not win all the wards it had expected in the elections.
He congratulated winners from all parties and said the party would closely examine the losses and identify shortcomings. "Later, we will take corrective measures," he added.
Senior Congress leader and MP Rajmohan Unnithan said the trends in the local body elections indicated that the UDF would return to power in the 2026 Assembly elections.
"We will win 111 seats as in 1977 and return to power in 2026. The anti-government sentiment of the people is reflected in the elections," he said.
Unnithan said the people were disturbed and unhappy with the present government.
"The trend indicates the end of the LDF government," he added.
CPI(M) MLA M M Mani said the people had shown ingratitude towards the LDF despite benefiting from welfare schemes.
"After receiving all welfare schemes and living comfortably, people voted against us due to some temporary sentiments. Is that not ingratitude," he asked.
Mani said no such welfare initiatives had taken place in Kerala earlier.
"People are receiving pensions and have enough to eat. Even after getting all this, they voted against us. This is what can be called ingratitude," he said.
Muslim League state president Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal said the results were beyond expectations.
"The outcome points towards the Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram, indicating that a change of government is imminent. We are going to win the Assembly election," he said.
