Government for Mining Industries! Legislative to Institutional Support

This chapter examines the development of India’s mining sector during two separate periods: the first when the government controlled the welfare system and the second when the market took over after liberalization. It examines how economic and political structures, primarily legislative actions, have shaped the mining industry. The chapter makes the case that the government sought to balance economic fairness, resource allocation, and popular consent by drawing on ideas of general equilibrium, welfare economics, and deliberative democracy. Land acquisition for mining is an essential agent of change, and this chapter traces the evolution of land laws from the colonial period, particularly the 1894 Land Acquisition Act, which facilitated resource exploitation for British interests. The paper explores how land acquisition, often intertwined with displacement, remains politically sensitive, impacting public and private sector projects. It also highlights the challenges and contradictions in land reforms, with states prioritizing industrialization over redistributive land policies, and examines the socio-political implications of land governance in India’s mineral sector. Also, the chapter argues that every amendment of the MMDR Act of 1957 passed after the 1990s aims to give private capital the most support possible. The only development law that has undergone significant adjustments and changes since its beginning is the MMDR Act of 1957. Additionally, it won’t finish. Micro-level implementation of macro-level legislative measures is required.