One side, there is the campaign for sustainability, and on the other side, they are breaking the legs of the mining industry.
This is today’s picture of the Indian mining industry.
We all still don’t know why the govt is making fun of and disrespecting the mining industry.
Today, the news of the 10th round of commercial coal block auctions, the Odisha govt’s 11th round of mining block auctions, and J&K’s 2nd round of limestone auctions – all are just to extract money from private players.
We all know that the maximum number of auctioned blocks are having a lot of challenges in terms of lower grade. Where the govt should help miners in bringing new technologies, expertise, better beneficiation options, and incentives from global markets, it is only trying to extract maximum revenue from the miners through this auction process.
This is not at all acceptable.
On the other side, they’re quietly—sometimes not so quietly—breaking the legs of the very industry that makes all that green possible.
No, I’m not exaggerating. I’ve lived this. Breathed the dust. Walked the faces. Watched good men lose sleep over compliance, not production.
This is the real picture of India’s mining industry today. And honestly? It hurts.
Because we still don’t understand why the government seems to be making fun of us. Disrespecting us. Treating miners like we’re some kind of problem to be managed, rather than the foundation of the nation’s economic spine.
Let me explain. But first, a small request: don’t read this as an anti-government rant. Read this as someone who genuinely loves this industry and is scared to see where it’s heading.
Auctions After Auctions – But for Whose Gain?
Last week, I saw three headlines in one single morning:
- 10th round of commercial coal block auctions announced.
- Odisha government’s 11th round of mining block auctions.
- Jammu & Kashmir’s 2nd round of limestone auctions.
My first thought wasn’t excitement. It was exhaustion.
Not because auctions are bad. Auctions can be transparent. But look closer. What’s really happening?
These aren’t about nation-building anymore. These feel like revenue-harvesting exercises. Private players are being called in not as partners, but as milch cows. The message is loud and clear: “Pay up, take the block, figure out the rest yourself.”
And here’s the dirty secret that no press release will tell you: most of these auctioned blocks have serious challenges. Lower grade ore. Difficult terrain. Poor access. High impurities. Hidden liabilities from old illegal mining.
You’re not bidding for a goldmine. You’re bidding for a headache wrapped in a legal document.
Where’s the Helping Hand?
If the government truly wanted to build a world-class mining ecosystem, they’d do three things:
- Help miners bring in new technologies – better sensors, automated drilling, real-time grade control.
- Encourage global expertise – not by lectures, but by easing joint ventures and tech partnerships.
- Offer beneficiation incentives – because low-grade ore needs washing, crushing, and separation, and that costs real money.
But no. Instead of enabling better mining, the system is designed to extract maximum revenue upfront. The bid premium. The royalty. The taxes. The levies. The district mineral foundation contributions (which, let’s be honest, we rarely see translated into actual village schools or hospitals).
And don’t even get me started on the DMF funds.
We hear crores being collected. Where are the schools? Where are the functioning hospitals in mining areas? I’ve personally visited villages near iron ore belts where the nearest primary health center is 40 kilometers away, and the road is a death trap in monsoon. ESI hospitals? In many locations, they exist only on paper.
So tell me – if revenue has increased by 1000% (and yes, numbers don’t lie), what is the government giving back to the mining industry in return?
Almost nothing. Barely a whisper.
The Two Terrible Choices Miners Face
Let’s come to the ground level. You’re a miner – medium-sized player, maybe a few hundred crores in turnover. You win an auction. Now what?
You have exactly two options. Both are ugly.
Option 1: Make end products with lower margins.
That means cutting costs. And how do you cut costs in mining? You reduce manpower. You delay maintenance. You compromise on safety gear. You push older machines beyond their limits. Eventually, you produce lower-quality output.
Option 2: Produce high-cost end products.
You do everything right – proper beneficiation, environmental safeguards, skilled labor, modern equipment. But your cost structure becomes uncompetitive. Steel plants, cement companies, power generators won’t pay a premium just because you feel ethical. They’ll go to cheaper sources.
In both cases, guess who suffers?
The common person.
Higher infrastructure costs. Costlier cement. More expensive electricity. Lower-quality roads. And ultimately, projects stalled because raw material prices fluctuate unpredictably.
We forget that mining is not some exotic luxury. It’s the first link in the chain that builds homes, hospitals, bridges, train tracks, solar panels, wind turbines, and even EV batteries. You can’t go green without mining. That’s not irony – that’s physics.
A Simple Question No One Answers
If this auction-heavy, revenue-maximizing model is so brilliant, tell me one thing: Why has no other country in the world fully copied India’s approach?
I’ll wait.
Yes, the USA and Canada have auctions. I’ve studied them. I’ve spoken to mining engineers in Nevada and Saskatchewan. Their auctions are exploration-focused. The government takes the geological risk. The upfront cost is low. The private player pays only after discovery and feasibility. And even then, the government remains a partner, not a predator.
Compare that to India: pay huge upfront. Take all risk. No guarantee of grade. No tech support. No fiscal cushion if global prices crash.
And then we wonder why private participation sometimes feels half-hearted. Or why some auctioned blocks are simply sitting idle.
The Bribe Factor – Let’s Be Honest
I don’t like talking about this. But if we’re being human here, let’s be real.
Bribes are involved in more than 90% of cases for official work. Land clearance. Forest diversion. Explosives license. Transport permit. Renewal of mining plan. Even getting a simple no-objection certificate.
I’m not naming individuals. I’m talking about the system. A system where every approval becomes a negotiation. Every file movement demands a “facilitation fee.” Every inspection is a veiled threat.
This doesn’t happen because miners are corrupt. It happens because the system is designed to be slow, opaque, and discretionary. And where discretion lives, rent-seeking follows.
And you know what the saddest part is? Miners pay these bribes silently. Because if they complain, the file stops moving. And a stopped file means blocked production. Blocked production means idle workers. Idle workers means families going hungry.
That’s the real cost of “maximum revenue” thinking.
I’m Emotional About This. Sue Me.
Look, I’m a mining engineer. Not a politician. Not a lobbyist. Not a billionaire.
I chose this field because I loved the earth. Because I believed that taking resources from the ground responsibly was one of the most honest forms of work. You don’t cheat the rock. You don’t lie to the seam. You drill, blast, haul, and process with respect.
But today, I feel disrespected. Not by the rock. By the system.
We are treated like tax terrorists. Like revenue automatons. Like we don’t bleed, don’t dream, don’t care about our workers or our villages.
Please don’t get offended by this message. Offense is easy. Reflection is harder.
All I’m asking is this: stop treating mining like a cash register. Start treating it like a strategic national capability.
Give us technology support. Fix the approval process. Make DMF funds visible and accountable. Reduce the upfront burden. Share the risk. And for God’s sake, let us breathe without paying a bribe.
Because when you break mining’s legs, you don’t just hurt miners. You break the foundations of everything else that follows.
And one more thing – next time you charge an EV or switch on a solar light, remember where the copper, aluminum, lithium, and rare earths came from.
Not from a brochure. From the earth. And from people who still love it, despite everything.
— Written by someone who still believes in Indian mining. Just not in the system that keeps strangling it.