Mining Rights in Srinagar and Budgam
The motto of the Indian Army is “Sewa Paramo Dharma” which means “Service is our Religion/Duty”. From the perspective of Kashmiris, this service is merely a protection for the Indian state to exploit natural resources of Kashmir. The ‘special status’ of J & K barred non-J & K businesses from leasing or renting local mineral blocks. After abrogation of autonomy, for the first time ever companies from Punjab, Uttar Pradesh & Rajasthan participated in public auctions and won 100% of the leases to mine J&K’s reserves of coal, marble and limestone. Kashmir’s local business community feels it has been placed at a disadvantage competing against bigger players who make bids they just can’t seem to match. These mines have deposits of limestone, gypsum, bauxite and borax, besides fossil fuel coal, and granite and marble. The local administration has also identified gemstones such as sapphire, garnet and tourmaline.
This is also the first time that auctions to J & K mines were held online. With restrictions on the internet, Kashmiris were at a disadvantage but even if someone would manage to connect to the internet from outside Kashmir, it was not possible to compete against the higher bids by Indian businessmen whose bids were at least 2 times higher than Kashmiri bids.
On an ecological front also, it must be said – it does not matter if unplanned mining is undertaken by a Kashmiri or by an Indian- it will cause irreversible damage to Kashmir’s ecology.
List of mining bidders.
Relevant links for further reading:
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