Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu is firm on exploiting the plenty bauxite resources for the development of Andhra Pradesh. Releasing the whitepaper on bauxite policy, the chief minister made it clear that it would be difficult for the state to progress unless the state uses the resources in a judicious manner. Widespread opposition to the proposed bauxite mining from the tribal people of Agency in Visakhapatnam as well as environmentalists forced Naidu to take the recourse to whitepaper. But, 19-page white paper contains nothing new except expressing in the adamancy of going ahead on the project come what may.
The whitepaper had been released ostensibly to educate the people and political parties, who were opposed to the mining of bauxite reserves from agency areas in the East Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts. There has been an uproar by political parties and advasis of the region against the Telugu Desam government’s proposal to reopen the case of bauxite mining, which was set aside during the latter half of Congress regime. But, after coming to power, Naidu, who opposed the bauxite policy of the then chief minister Y Rajasekhar Reddy, saw great revenue generating potential in the bauxite business. He wanted to exploit the high grade bauxite available in the state to finance the massive developmental programs, including construction of Amaravati. With the intent of entering bauxite exploitation, the government issued the GO No. 97 transferring 1200 ac of land to APMDC, unmindful of the opposition by political parties, the resistance by tribal people and a resolution of the Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) rejecting the proposal.
Naidu made a specific reference to tribal people and need to educate them about revenue potential of bauxite mining. The white paper focuses on the high-quality of bauxite reserves available in the Agency areas of Visakhapatnam and East Godavari. He said Andhra stands second in the quantum of reserves in the country. Narrating the attempts by the previous governments to exploit the bauxite, the CM sought to clarify on his opposition to the bauxite mining attempt by the then YSR goverment. ” YSR government threw all the norms and suggestions to the winds to allow free exploitation of the ore by the private companies. It was against the ban imposed on the private companies’ mining in agency areas that fall in Schedule V. Though the then chief secretary and principal secretary, environment and forest, noted their opposition to giving free hand in mining to the private firms ANRAK and Jindal South West, on the related files, the then chief minister YSR sought to go ahead overruling the opposition,” he said adding that the present government wants to exploit mineral wealth in a systematic and scientific way by involving public sector companies.
Naidu’s white paper mentions that the Union Ministry of Mines advised the State Government to take into consideration the TAC’s recommendations which was statutory, but sought to hide the fact that the TAC of the then Congress government with former tribal welfare minister P Balaraju as head had already passed a resolution against the bauxite mining. It means Naidu want’s to manufacture a new consent from a new TAC in favor of bauxite mining.
“We will take a final call on the mining of the bauxite after the issue debated at all levels. The purpose of the white paper is to keep the facts before the public and allow them to see the advantages of the present policy and benefits that accrue to the state,” he said. Expressing dismay that the tribal region had been steeped in poverty and their children had not been able to go to school, Naidu assured, if the bauxite was exploited, ” I can transform the region and the lives of the people by allocating huge sums on the development of the region from the revenues state get from the bauxite mining,” he assured.
