VED holds session on ‘Mining’

 

 

 

THE Vidarbha Economic Development Council (VED) recently, conducted a discussion on mining at Narayani Memorial Hall. The session addressed key concerns surrounding compensatory afforestation, a crucial requirement for mining and industrial projects.

 

As per Government regulations, any clearing of forest cover for such developments mandates afforestation on an equivalent piece of land elsewhere. The session was graced by chief guest, Ashish Jaiswal, Minister of State for Finance, Planning, Agriculture Rehabilitation, Law and Justice, Labour, and MLA of Ramtek. A special highlight of the evening was the inauguration of latest edition of ‘Progress Pulse’, VED’s monthly magazine. The session began with welcoming remarks by VED President Rina Sinha, who set the tone for a focused and constructive dialogue on the policy and procedural aspects influencing the mining industry. Key speakers included Rajkumar Dongre, Adv Harish Thakur, and VED Vice President B K Shukla.

 

During the interactive session with industrial stakeholders, Minister Jaiswal clarified that while compensatory afforestation land must ideally be adjacent to existing forests, it can be located anywhere within Maharashtra. Local forest department officials during the session also confirmed that land should typically adjoin existing forests, but there is flexibility in selecting locations across State. The session also marked the induction of new VED members: Bharat Khatrani, Satyanarayan Agrawal, Deepak Jaiswal, Pankaj Gautam, and speaker Rajkumar Dongre, into the VED Council. Ashish Sharma, Secretary General of VED proposed a vote of thanks.