Opposition stages walkout from Rajya Sabha demanding discussion on Bihar electoral rolls revision
New Delhi: The Opposition on Tuesday staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha demanding a discussion on the issue of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
Opposition MPs of the INDIA bloc walked out of the Upper House soon after The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill 2025 was taken up for discussion.
Members of the Congress, Left parties, DMK, RJD, and the Trinamool Congress were among those who protested in the House, demanding that a discussion on the SIR issue be taken up.
Opposition parties have been protesting in the Upper House on the issue ever since the start of the monsoon session on July 21.
The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill 2025 was passed by the Upper House after the walkout. The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 12.
It seeks to widen the scope and territorial domain of the National Mineral Exploration Trust to enable the use of the funds accrued to it within India, including offshore areas, and outside India for the exploration and development of mines and minerals.
"Right now, we have a trade war going on... there is a tariff issue going on between India and the United States and with many other countries of the world with the US. Why is China left out from that extra special treatment which is now being meted out to India?
"The reason is they have rare earths and critical minerals. They are in a position wherein they can command, because they can spoil the entire value chain which is built up across the US or in any other country just by not supplying those critical elements," Praful Patel of the NCP said.
He said India has not been able to fully exploit its rare earth minerals, which are critical towards the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047. Patel said India's environmental clearance processes need to be simplified as unnecessary delays are caused in obtaining approvals due to the involvement of NGOs and vested interests.
G K Vasan of TMC (M) said the bill is the need of the hour for the nation, emphasising that if India has to play an important international role in this field, the existing framework has to be modernised.
He said the bill secures our economic future by reducing our dependence on countries like China because for electrical devices, phones, laptops, etc, we depend on them.
Asserting that mining is definitely going to create new jobs, Vasan expressed confidence that this bill will resolve pending applications, curb illegal mining and definitely revive investors' confidence.
Talking about the serious issue of illegal sand mining, which involves illicit extraction of sand from riverbeds and coastal areas, Vasan said, due to illegal sand mining in states like Tamil Nadu, groundwater resources are depleted affecting livelihoods of farmers.
Masthan Rao Yadav Beedha of the TDP said "the bill seeks to modernise the existing framework, addresses gaps in exploration and licensing and unlocks the potential of our critical minerals that are vital for our future in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047".
Several BJP members spoke on the bill and raised the alleged irregularities in the auction process of minerals and coal blocks and the "coal scam" under the previous Congress-led UPA regime, stressing that the Modi-led government has ushered in transparency over the last decade.
