In April 2023, the Caurem-Pirla gram sabha or village council in South Goa, passed a resolution to oppose any state plans to divert forest land for a mining project.

The diversion of forest land has been proposed at the mountain at Survey no. 19/0, an area which consists of forest and agricultural land. The Zamblidadga Iron and Manganese Ore Mine is spread across 70.20 hectares on the mountain, and lies at the heart of this conflict.

Located in Quepem, Caurem has a significant Scheduled Tribe population, a large number of whom belong to the Velip and Gaonkar communities.

The gram sabha's resolution comes after the mine owners of the area sought environmental clearance to carry out open cast iron ore mining in the area. According to the villagers, the land is a proposed reserve forest under the Indian Forest Act, 1927. It has one Community Forest Right (CFR) and 149 Individual Forest Right (IFR) claims pending since 2015.

As per the tribes people, they have been exploited for centuries by the Dessais, an upper caste community which forms a small slice of the village population. Earlier this used to occur through collusion with Portuguese colonisers. Today, it occurs through their collusion with mining corporations.

Mining began in Caurem in the 1960s, and intensified in 2004 with the onset of mechanised mining. Village residents claim land control was captured by mining companies through various illegal means.

"Mining has disrupted traditional agriculture and water supply, and caused a lot of damage in our village. It has led to a depleted water table, polluted fields and water bodies, and affected cultivation of paddy, coconut, jackfruit and cashew, among other crops" said tribal activist and resident Ravindra Velip.

The lease is held by late Naraina S Quirtonim and is owned by Pradnya Zoivant Poi Cano. According to Velip, “Local communities have traditionally depended on these forests for agriculture and foraging; it is linked to our livelihoods. But there is also a lot of cultural and religious significance attached to the mountains.”

A report on Caurem, prepared by village elders and accessed by LCW, details the ecological and cultural significance of the mountain. Villagers use the land at Survey 19/0 for cultivation as well as to procure honey, wild mushrooms, and berries. A spring that starts at the bottom of the mountain provides irrigation to other parts of the villages.

The mountain also serves as a site to make religious offerings as the villagers believe that it is the abode of several local gods. “[In present day], the tribals could build their houses, educate their children and buy two wheeler vehicles with little savings only with blessings of this mountain,” the report reads.

The Community Forest Right (CFR) claim was made in July 2015 under the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006. The villagers had submitted their CFR claim to the Sub-Divisional Level Committee (SDLC).

In April 2017, villagers submitted a reminder after no initiative was taken to process the claim.

In February 2023, they filed an RTI to find out the status of the CFR claim, but their concerns were not adequately addressed, according to Velip. “The claims for CFR have been pending with the authorities for seven years and despite multiple attempts, we have not received any favourable response. Instead, they have started the process to grant an Environmental Clearance for mining,” added Velip.

On 6 March 2023, the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) announced that a public hearing would be held on 11 April 2023 to decide on the Environment Clearance sought by the mining lease owners.

The terms of reference for conducting the environmental impact assessment (EIA) had been heard and approved by the Goa State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) in March 2022. The EIA was conducted between 1 March 2022 and 31 May 2022.

On 5 April 2023, the GAKUVED Federation – comprising four ST communities in the state, Gawada, Kunbi, Velip, and Dhangar – approached the Goa bench of the High Court. They requested that the CFR claim be fast-tracked and that the Environment Clearance not be processed before the settling of the claim. The federation also sought directions for restraining the scheduled public hearing.

Subsequently, the public hearing scheduled for April 11 was cancelled by the GSPCB on direction of the South Goa District Magistrate. Report suggested that the move was taken in anticipation of a law and order situation. The PIL was admitted to court on 25 April 2023.

The Bombay High Court disposed of the case on August 2, 2023. The Advocate General told the court that while the SEIAA would continue the process of considering the application for environmental clearance, the clearance will not be granted until the forest right claims have been decided upon. It added that the SDLC would take the decision on the claim within one year. 

As on 5 August 2024, no progress has been made on the forest rights claims. “We have raised the issue in our meetings with the District Collector and the Deputy Collector, but there has been no action taken. The court had given one year’s time to consider the claim, which is over now,” Velip told LCW.
 
LCW has approached the mining lease owners for comments but did not receive a response at the time of filing the report.