SC to hear Rajasthan's plea on closure of mines today

JAIPUR: Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to an urgent hearing of the appeal filed by Rajasthan government against the shutdown of nearly 23,000 mines in the state due to a ruling by National Green Tribunal (NGT). The appeal will be heard by an apex court bench on Friday.

The application of the state government was mentioned before the Chief Justice of India by additional solicitor general of India, Aishwarya Bhati, and Raj government ’s additional advocate general Shiv Mangal Sharma. In the appeal filed on Wednesday, Rajasthan government sought an extension of time for nearly 23,000 mining leases to comply with environmental regulations.

The extension would allow time for the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change’s (MoEF) State Level Authority, SEIAA, to process the required appraisals and reappraisals as mandated by the NGT order. The appeal follows an NGT ruling requiring mining leases that received environmental clearances (ECs).