Now Reading: Parliament passes Mines Bill to rein in state mining taxes
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Parliament passes Mines Bill to rein in state mining taxes
The Parliament passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, on Thursday, empowering the centre to regulate state taxes, cess, and levies on mineral rights. Mines minister G Kishan…
The Story in Brief
The Parliament passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, on Thursday, empowering the centre to regulate state taxes, cess, and levies on mineral rights. Mines minister G Kishan Reddy said excessive fiscal burdens make mining commercially unviable and cause mine closures. He assured MPs that states will remain the primary beneficiaries, and the centre will get no share of the proceeds.
The bill follows a 2024 Supreme Court verdict allowing states to levy additional mining taxes, after which Karnataka, Jharkhand, and Tamil Nadu imposed fresh levies. Reddy said a uniform fiscal framework will ensure that cumulative levies do not become disproportionate to mining profitability.
The Indian Opinion
The usual federal-versus-state drama is predictable, but the real question is whether the Centre’s uniform fiscal framework will genuinely protect mining viability or simply become another bureaucratic leash. States like Karnataka and Jharkhand had genuine revenue needs after the Supreme Court verdict. Watch for the specific formula the mines ministry announces, will it index royalty to global mineral prices?
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
