# Naveen Patnaik seeks special session on mining law 2026-08-24T02:42:40+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has written to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, urging a special session of the state assembly to discuss the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026. The bill was passed by Parliament on August 13 and has received presidential assent. Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal and other Opposition parties describe the new law as a potential financial disaster for Odisha, which is India's largest producer of chromite. The amendment changes the pricing and royalty framework for mineral extraction, shifting key powers from state-run agencies to the central government. The BJD, which was in power until this year, argues the change will severely reduce the state's revenue from its rich mineral deposits. The Act is now law, and the focus shifts to the rules the Centre will frame to implement it. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The BJD's alarm over the 2026 amendment reflects a deeper structural tension in India's federal mining regime. Mines and minerals are a Union subject, but states lose a major revenue stream when auction royalties are replaced by a central levy. Odisha, which supplies over half of India's chromite and substantial iron ore, has the most at stake: mining contributed roughly 8% of its gross state domestic product in recent years. The precedent is the 2015 MMDR Amendment, which mandated auction-based allocation and sharply reduced state discretion. Here, the key change moves the pricing power from the state-run Odisha Mining Corporation to a central mechanism, potentially lowering the floor price for ore. The next signal will come when the Centre notifies the rules under the new Act, likely within six months, those rules will determine how much of the royalty pool actually flows back to Bhubaneswar. ## Coverage - thehindu.com Leads with the Opposition's alarm over a financial disaster, frames the amendment as a trigger for political concern without countervailing government justification This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Biju Janata Dal, Mohan Charan Majhi, Naveen Patnaik, Odisha, Odisha Legislative Assembly Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/naveen-patnaik-seeks-special-session-on-mining-law/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/naveen-patnaik-seeks-special-session-on-mining-law/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/