Iron ore export issue bugs government

BHUBANESWAR: Six years after it was signed and one year after it lapsed, the State Government on Wednesday announced that it is hopeful of renewal of the MoU with Posco as the protesting brigade observed ‘Black Day’ onWednesday. The Government and Posco- India had signed MoU on June 22 six years back for setting up the 12 million tonne capacity steel plant, the largest single FDI in the country. The MoU lapsed last year. The process of renewal has been started amidst the growing opposition to the establishment of the steel plant at the proposed site.However, the Government has already started preliminary work including levelling of acquired land and its demarcation.Sources, however, said that no decision has been taken on the controversialiron ore export clause. Steel and Mines Minister Raghunath Mohanty said his department is examining whether to delete the clause.While according final forest clearance for the Posco project on May 2, UnionMinister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh in his order hadasked the Government to renegotiate for the revised MoU in such a way that export of iron ore is avoided.Ramesh had said in the order that he was ‘deeply uncomfortable’ with the provision of iron ore export in the MoU with Posco-India.Mohanty said the renewed MoU will come into force with retrospective effect. The State Government is banking on differences in two ministries of the Centre.While the Environment Ministry wants the iron ore export clause to be deleted,the Commerce Ministry has so far raised no objection.The Minister said Posco has agreed to include the Government’s job reservationprovision in the new MoU. It will also have many important issues like watersupply and mining lease. Posco will be supplied with raw material by the OrissaMining Corporation (OMC) for the time being.Prior to renewing the MoU, the Government has taken the views of departmentslike Water Resources, Forest and Environment, Energy, Transport and Commerce. Meanwhile, the Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) observed the sixth anniversary of the signing of MoU as a ‘Black Day’ at Dhinkia.Thousands of anti-Posco activists, including women and schoolchildren, joined arally by sporting black badges. Leaders of Congress and Left parties, civil society and trade unions joined the ‘Black Day’ protest at Gobindpur.