After a 15-year halt, on Thursday, November 28, the Karnataka government approved a policy that resumes iron ore exports-imports (EXIM) and trade operations from the state’s 13 non-major ports. The passage of the Karnataka Non-major Ports Iron Ore Handling Policy 2025 is set to offer a significant boost to the state’s trade revenue, in line with an earlier Supreme Court ruling that had enabled the state to discard the ban, under certain conditions.
Illegal iron ore exports led to the ban
The illegal iron ore exports in large quantities in 2010, which were also associated with the extraction of iron ore at an illegal scale, led to the state government banning iron ore exports from ten non-major ports in the country, under the Karnataka Ports (Landing and Shipping Fees) Act, 1961. The ban imposed on the Karwar, Tadadi, Bhatkal, Malpe, Old Mangalore, Belekeri, Honnavar, Kundapura, Hangarkatta and Padubidri ports by the B.S. Yediyurappa-led government was also upheld in 2012 by the Karnataka High Court. At the time, it had been responding to petitions from around 40 mining companies challenging the stay on the ban. However, the Supreme Court enabled the iron ore exports from the non-major ports under the Karnataka Maritime Board (KMB), as was being done by the rest of the country-in line with the EXIM policies of the Indian government.
Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil stated: “The policy is a standard operating procedure for the export of iron ore from these ports. The policy will come into effect prospectively,”. Moreover, he added that the policy, however, could not be implemented with retrospective effect, as various cases are pending in courts
Policy is expected to generate Income from Registration fees
The policy is expected to generate income from registration fees, land licensing fees, wharfage fees, as well as pollution control, safety and supervision fees, along with some deposits and penalties.
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