MINERAL
CONSERVATION & DEVELOPMENT RULES, 1988
CHAPTER
I
Preliminary
1. Short title and
commencement:
(1) These
rules may be called the Mineral Conservation and Development
Rules, 1988.
(2) They
shall come into force from the date of their publication in
the Official Gazette.
2. Application:
These rules
shall apply to all minerals except:
(i) petroleum
and natural gas;
(ii) coal,
lignite and sand for stowing;
(iii) any
mineral declared as prescribed substances for the purpose of
the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 (33 of 1962); and
(iv) minor
minerals.
3. Definitions:
In these
rules, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a)
“abandonment of mine” means final closure of a mine
either whole or part thereof when the mineral deposits within
mine or part thereof, have been fully extracted or when the
mining operations have become uneconomic;
(aa)
"Act" means the Mines and Minerals (Development and
Regulation) Act, 1957 (67 of 1957);
(b)
"agent", when used in relation to a mine, means any
person whether appointed as such or not, who acts as the
representative of the owner in respect of the management of
the mine or any part thereof;
(c)
"authorised officer" means any officer of the Indian
Bureau of mines duly authorised in writing by the Controller
General, Indian Bureau of Mines to perform the functions under
these rules;
(d)
"beneficiation" means processing of minerals or ores
for the purpose of –
(i)
regulating the size of a desired produce;
(ii)
removing unwanted constituents; and
(iii)
improving quality, purity or assay grade of desired
product:
(e)
"Boring" or "drilling" means the penetration of
alluvial material, rocks or formations by holes for obtaining
geological information, and for drawing samples therefrom;
(f) "Chief
Controller of Mines" means the Chief Controller of Mines
of the Indian Bureau of Mines;
(g)
"Controller General" means the Controller General of
the Indian Bureau of Mines;
(h)
"Controller of Mines" means the Controller of Mines of
the Indian Bureau of mines;
(i)
"development" means the driving of an opening to, or in
an ore-body or seam or removing overburden or unproductive or
waste materials as preparatory to mining or stoping;
(j)
"environment" and "environmental pollution",
shall have the same meanings, assigned respectively to these
terms in the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (29 of
1986);
(jj) “final
mine closure plan” means a plan for the purpose of
decommissioning, reclamation and rehabilitation in the mine or
part thereof after cessation of mining and mineral processing
operations that has been prepared in the manner specified in
the standard format and guidelines issued by the Indian Bureau
of Mines;
(jjj)
“financial assurance” means the sureties furnished by the
leaseholder to the competent authority so as to indemnify the
authorities against the reclamation and rehabilitation
cost;
(k)
"Form" means a Form set forth in Schedule to these
rules;
(l)
"geologist" means a person appointed in writing by the
owner or agent to perform the duties of a geologist under
these rules;
(m)
"manager" when used in relation to a mine, means any
person appointed by the owner or agent and includes the owner
or the agent if he appoints himself to be such manager, under
section 17 of the Mines Act, 1952 (35 of 1952);
(mm) “mine
closure” means steps taken for reclamation, rehabilitation
measures taken in respect of a mine or part thereof
commencing from cessation of mining or processing operations
in a mine or part thereof;
(n) "mining
engineer" means a person appointed in writing by the owner
or agent to perform the duties of a mining engineer under
these rules;
(o) "mining
plan" means a mining plan prepared under section 5 of the
Act and the rules made thereunder ;
(oo)
“progressive mine closure plan” means a progressive plan, for
the purpose of providing protective, reclamation and
rehabilitation measures in a mine or part thereof that has
been prepared in the manner specified in the standard format
and guidelines issued by Indian Bureau of Mines;
(p)
"prospect" means an area where prospecting operations
for minerals are being carried out and includes any area held
under prospecting licence;
(q)
"recognised person" means a person granted recognition
by the competent authority to prepare mining plan;
(r)
"Regional Controller" means the Regional Controller of
Mines of the Indian Bureau of Mines;
(s)
"shaft" means a vertical or inclined way or opening
leading from the surface to workings below ground or from one
part of the workings below ground to another, and includes an
incline;
(t)
"stoping" means making any underground excavation other
than development working made for the purpose of winning ores
or minerals and includes extraction or splitting or reduction
of pillars or blocks of minerals;
(tt) “temporary
discontinuance” means the planned or unplanned suspension of
mining operations in a mine or part thereof and where the
operations are likely to be resumed after certain time;
(u)
"year" means the twelve months period beginning from
the first day of April and ending on the thirty-first day of
March of the following year;
(v) all other
words and expressions used in these rules but not defined
shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the
Act.
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