The INDIA bloc in Odisha on Tuesday called for a Statewide campaign and ‘gherao’ of the Assembly on September 29, demanding the protection of the State’s rights over its mineral resources, land and forests.
At a convention attended by the constituent parties of the coalition group, including the Congress, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation, All India Forward Bloc, Nationalist Congress Party, Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal, speakers alleged the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2026, undermined the constitutional and fiscal rights of the States and provided greater scope for the exploitation of mineral resources by corporate entities.
Linking Odisha’s taxation and revenue-raising powers over mineral resources with Central approval was a “serious assault on the State’s fiscal autonomy”, they said.
“The historic Supreme Court judgment of 2024 recognised the constitutional rights of States in relation to mineral resources and their power to levy taxes on lands containing mineral resources,” said CPI(M) State secretary Suresh Panigrahi.
INDIA bloc leaders also alleged that mineral-rich States like Odisha stand to lose enormous revenues, running into lakhs of crores of rupees with the Centre preventing the recovery of previously uncollected taxes, cess and arrears.
Declaring that the State’s mineral resources belong to the people of Odisha, the convention presided by Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhakta Charan Das called for the repeal of the new Act, protection of the State’s constitutional rights, safeguarding the land, forest and livelihood rights of tribals, and the building of a broad-based people’s movement against “corporate plunder”.
“The convention also called for a mass mobilisation against the mining policies of the BJP government. A State Assembly gherao will be organised on September 29 as part of the continuing struggle,” said Mr. Panigrahi.
The book, Modi’s Blueprint for Mining Loot, authored by senior Left leader Santosh Das, was also formally released at the political convention.
Published – September 09, 2026 01:01 am IST
