Goa BJP MPs to meet Gadkari tomorrow on mining issue

Panaji: Goa’s three BJP MPs will meet Union minister Nitin Gadkari tomorrow to iron out issues plaguing the state’s mining sector.

They will also seek an appointment with BJP president Amit Shah, party leaders said.

This comes a few days after an all-party delegation met Gadkari and other Union ministers on March 5 but came back without any assurance.

The Supreme Court in a recent judgment quashed 88 mining leases in the state and banned the extraction of fresh ore from March 15. It also suggested to the state government to auction the leases.

The delegation to Delhi will comprise the party’s two Lok Sabha MPs from the state- Shripad Naik and Narendra Sawaikar- and Vinay Tendulkar of the Rajya Sabha.

“All the three of us will meet Gadkari tomorrow in Delhi as we want the Centre s intervention to save the mining industry from this crisis,” said Tendulkar.

He added that the delegation would invite Gadkari to Goa to have discussions on the issue with BJP legislators as well as its partners in the coalition government.

“We need to work out a solution. It is an industry that has employed lakhs of people for so many years. We will also try to meet party president Amit Shah,” Tendulkar said.

He said that passing a law in Parliament to keep the SC order in abeyance would not be possible as it would need support of opposition parties as well.

“We can t even overlook the fact that states like Karnataka and Odisha have opted for auctioning of mine leases following directives from the SC,” he said.