Villagers of Advalpal today obtained relief from the High Court after it passed an order restraining Sesa Goa from carrying out mining operations in the area. This was in response to a petition filed by a nine-year old boy of the village.

The high court of Bombay at Goa on Thursday, in an interim order, restrained Sesa Goa from carrying on mining activities at phase 1 and phase 2 of its iron ore mine at Advalpal in Assonora.

It further directed Sesa Goa to place before it a proposal for removing the illegal mining dumps along the Advalpal nullah within a fixed time frame on the next date of hearing. The court is likely to hear the matter again on October 8.

The nine-year old boy, Akash Naik had filed his petition, through his mother Sharmila Naik together with Goa Foundation. In it he had highlighted his grim future in a village that will neither have water nor paddy fields since the mining companies have destroyed all the nallahs, and the sediment from their mining activities has already damaged their paddy fields.

The petitioner’s case was also strengthened by affidavit filed by the Deputy Controller of Mines which stated “that the mining company had violated the provision of the approved mining plan by not dumping the waste in the designated places.”