Sat to check illegal mining in Ballari

Ballari: In a path-breaking move, the Union Directorate of Mines Safety is expected to introduce Mining Surveillance System (MSS), a pan-India surveillance network using the latest satellite technology, to check illegal mining in the Ballari-Sandur-Hosapete region shortly.

"MSS technology will be implemented shortly in the region. Mine owners must take care of safety measures at mines," said Mr Prashanth Kumar Sarkar, Director-General, Directorate of Mines Safety (DMS), Dhanbad.

Mr Sarkar was speaking at a function to mark "Mines Safety Week" at Hosapete in the district on Sunday.He said officials of the Directorate were not able to check each mine and the MMS technology will be used to ensure safe and legal mining.

"Some mine owners here indulge din illegal mining activities in the past and such activities should not recur," he said. Mine owners too have ethical and social responsibilities while mining, he said.

He expressed hope that the MMS technology will ensure sustainable utilisation of the country's mineral resources.  "MSS will trigger an alarm whenever there is an instance of illegal mining outside permitted areas. Karnataka, which saw large instances of illegal mining in the past, stands to gain tremendously from this technology," he said.

"This technology will help design planned development of the mining region and also provide data of labourers working in the sector online. This will lead to better safety standards," he said. 

MSS is a satellite-based monitoring network, which aims at checking illegal mining through automatic remote-sensing detection technology.