Lok Sabha Question No. 6470 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-06
Subject: Safety Zone around Mining Lease
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: RITA TARAI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 6470

TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2018

## Safety Zone around Mining Lease

## 6470.  SHRIMATI RITA TARAI:

Will  the Minister  of  ENVIRONMENT, FORESTS  AND  CLIMATE  CHANGE  be  pleased  to state:

- (a) The  details  of  the  area  on  either  side  of  the  public  road,  natural  stream,  highways, agricultural land located within Mining Lease (ML) to be taken into account for calculation of Safety Zone;
- (b) if so, whether necessary guidelines have been issued in this regard;
- (c) if so, the details thereof, if not, the reason therefore;
- (d) Whether  if  two  adjacent  mining  leases  are  owned  by  the  same  lessee  can  be  treated  as cluster  and  7.5  meter  along  the  inner  boundary  of  the  cluster  shall  be  considered  for calculation of safety zone area excluding the forest area of 7.5 meter strip on either side of the common boundary of ML owned by the same lessee, if so, the details thereof, and
- (e) Whether the government has issued circular/guidelines regarding calculation of safety zone area excluding the forest area of 7.5 meter strip on either side of the common boundary of the ML owned by the same lessee and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE

(DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

- (a) to (c): As per the information provided by the Indian Bureau of Mines, Ministry of Mines, the    Mineral  Concession  Rule  2016,  inter-alia,  lays  down  the  details  of  safety  zone  which  is placed at Annexure-I.
- (d)  and  (e): The  Ministry  of  Environment,  Forest  and  Climate  Change,  vide  letter  dated  2 nd February 2018, has clarified that the width of 10m and 50m strip on either side of public road and natural stream respectively located inside the mining lease shall be protected but will not be considered  as  a  part  of  safety  zone.  Safety  zone  will  be  redrawn  taking  the  cluster  of  all  the mining leases together if all the leases are carried by the same user agency.

Further, the Indian Bureau of Mines, Ministry of Mines, has also informed that the Metalliferous Mines Regulation (MMR) 1961, inter-alia, lays down various provisions which is provided at Annexure II.

***

## Annexure-I Provided  below  are  the  provisions  envisaged  in  Rule  12(d)  &  (e)  of  the Mineral Concession Rule 2016:-

12 (1)(d): Every lessee shall not carry on or allow to be carried on, any mining operations at any point  within  a  distance  of  fifty  meters  from  any  railway  line,  except  under  and  in  accordance with the previous written permission of the railway administration concerned or under or beneath any  ropeway  or  ropeway  trestle  or  station,  except  under  and  in  accordance  with  the  written permission  of  the  authority  owning  the  ropeway  or  from  any  reservoir,  canal  or  other  public works, or buildings, except under and in accordance with the previous written permission of any officer authorised by the State Government in this behalf. The said distance of fifty meters shall be measured in the case of railway, reservoir or canal, horizontally from the outer toe of the bank or the outer edge of the cutting, as the case may be, and in case of a building, horizontally from the plinth thereof;

12(1)(e):  The  lessee  shall  not,  in  the  case  of  village  roads  (including  any  track  shown  in  the revenue  record  as  village  road),  allow  any  working  to  be  carried  on  within  a  distance  of  ten meters  of  the  outer  edge  of  the  cutting  except  with  the  previous  permission  of  the  Deputy Commissioner or Collector or any other officer duly authorised by the State Government in this behalf and otherwise than in accordance with such directions, restrictions and additions, either general or special, which may be attached to such permission.

## Annexure-II

## Provided  below  are  the  provisions  envisaged  in  Rule  111  of  Metalliferous Mines Regulation 1961:-

Rule 111: Working near mine boundaries - 2[(1)The owner, agent or manager of every mine shall fixed boundaries of the mine. Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-regulation (2), the shall not be changed except with the permission of the Chief Inspector in writing and subject to such conditions as he may specify therein].

3[(2)] No working shall be made within a distance of 7.5 metres of the boundary of any mine and, in case of a disputed boundary, no working shall be made within a distance of 7.5 metres of the boundary claimed by the owner of an adjacent mine until such time as a binding agreement has been reached as to the correct boundary or the question has been finally determined by a court of law:

1[Provided further that, where the workings of any 2 [mine], for any reason, are extended or get extended within any shorter distance than what is laid down herein above, the Chief Inspector may, by an order in writing, require the owner to construct such protective works within such time as he may specify in the order].

3[(3)] Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-regulation (1), the Chief Inspector may, by an order in writing and subject to such conditions as he may specify therein, permit the workings of any mine or part thereof to extend within any shorter distance than 7.5 metres aforesaid, or may require that the said working shall not extend further than a specified distance, not exceeding 60 metres, of such boundary.