55 mining cos served notice for evading forest cess

Fifty-five mining companies here were slapped notices for not paying Forest Development Tax (FDT), an official said on Tuesday. In the first round, 14 companies were served notices last week on similar grounds by the Forest Department.

The notices were issued as the companies owe huge amounts in the form of taxes and they had been warned that their properties would be confiscated unless the dues are paid in full, Ballari District Forest Officer <g data-gr-id="18">Taqat</g> Sing <g data-gr-id="19">Ranavat</g> said.

However, the Karnataka Forest Act provides for payment of dues at any time with 18 <g data-gr-id="17">per cent</g> interest, officials said, adding it was not easy to take action against these companies.

In all, the district has 99 A, B and C category mining companies, of which only 21 are still operating. The Supreme Court appointed Central Empowered Committee had categorised all mines in the state in A, B and C with maximum irregularities being in the C category.