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Ahmedabad Chapter Vol. 1 | No. 1 | Monthly | September 2012

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Page 1: Vol. 1 | No. 1 | Monthly | September 2012 Ahmedabad …meaiahd.com/pdf/megazine/emag_vol1.pdfTo, Shri A. L. Thakore Chairman, Mining Engineers’ Association Ahmadabad Chapter, Ahmadabad

AhmedabadChapter

Vol. 1 | No. 1 | Monthly | September 2012

Page 2: Vol. 1 | No. 1 | Monthly | September 2012 Ahmedabad …meaiahd.com/pdf/megazine/emag_vol1.pdfTo, Shri A. L. Thakore Chairman, Mining Engineers’ Association Ahmadabad Chapter, Ahmadabad

To,Shri A. L. ThakoreChairman, Mining Engineers’ AssociationAhmadabad Chapter, Ahmadabad

Dear Sir,

Let me take this opportunity to congratulate you and Mr. S.N. Mathur, former Chairman of the Chapter for launching E-Magazine on 9th September 2012. It will be indeed an eye opener to other Chapters for initiating their efforts to commence their Website and E-Magazine for the benefits of the members of MEAI.

You and your team deserve a hearty applause for the sincere efforts to bring lots of laurels for your Chapter on launching Website and E-Magazine. Your action to organize Seminars / Symposia / Workshops on different burning issues on mining at various mining locations of Gujarat are praiseworthy

May God bless your Chapter to be more vibrant.

Best wishes

It is indeed a great pleasure to announce that MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter is to start e-magazine w.e.f. 9/9/2012, which will play a vital role in providing a broad platform to the members not only by way of sharing their knowledge and experience with latest technological developments but also to express their views on the burning issues of Mining Industry.

The e-magazine will also be a source of communication and live connectivity between members of MEAI.

MEAI Ahmedabad Chapater is the first Chapter in country to launch its website and e-magazine.

MESSAGES

I am happy to know that MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter has announced inauguration of e-magazine w.e.f.9th Sept. 2012, which will play a vital role as a fastest way of communicating link between its members, providing thema board platform not only in sharing their knowledge and expertise on latest technological developments but also to express themselves on burning mining related issues for timely rectification/mitigation of the problems faced by the industry.

This achievement of Chapter is commedable indeed being the first of its kind in the courntry, asa source of live communication and connectivity between all concerned.

I wish MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter all success in their endeavours in the times to come.

V. S. Gadhavi,IAS, MD GMDC

Dr. S. K. Sarangi,President, MEAI

A. L. Thakor,Chairman,

Ahmedabad Chapter

AhmedabadChapter

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EDITORIAL & CONTENTS

EDITORIAL

Mining Engineers Association of India – Ahmedabad Chapter (MEAI-A) has come up with a unique initiative to commence E-magazine for the community of Mining Engineers as well as those connected with mining industry. It is a welcome step.

Science of mining is witnessing rapid technological advances and also faces new challenges from factors like ground water, strata behavior, environmental concerns and increasing demand for more and better controlled minerals output. Issues like acceptable disposal of overburden and other wastes are becoming increasingly important. New approaches are required to tackle complex situations of land acquisition and proper land management. Safety issues, of course, have top most priorities.

In these days of increasing complexities on multiple factors, in workplace and elsewhere, sharing of problems and potential solutions is essential for well rounded progress of mining industry. Exchange of information, experiences and new developments will assist mining professionals to share the ideas and adopt best available industry practices.

MEAI-A has been a path breaking chapter of the Association which attempts to bring mining professionals on a common platform through various programs like workshops, meets, seminars etc. Starting of this E-magazine is one more step which will go a long way in facilitating spread of technical and other information in an easily accessible manner. This forum will be a new medium for channelizing effective dissemination of knowledge.

The views expressed by the authors in the e-magazine are not necessarily those of publisher / editor / MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter.

Reproduction in whole or part is strictly prohibited without prior permission from the Editor / Secretary MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter.

CONTENTS

AhmedabadChapter

The e-magazine will be published online on the Chapter’s website www.meaiahd.com every month in the first week. A list of the Special Issues topics is displayed elsewhere in this issue. It will neither be printed and nor will be circulated in any other form.

Authors are requested to send their papers / articles / other information in soft copies so as to reach us by the 20th of every month for inclusion in the succeeding months issue.

Editorial Board:

Shri A. L. Thakor, ChairmanShri S. B. Vora, MemberDr. R. D. Shah, MemberShri N. K. Purohit, Member

Shri J. D. Raj, Member

Editor: Shri Kiran Bera, 9099952409

Correspondence Address:

The Secretary,MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter, C/o GMDC Ltd., Khanij Bhavan,

7th Floor,132 ft Ring Road, Near University Ground, Vastrapur, Ahmedabad. 380052

Tel No. :079-27913211, 27910096, 27913200Fax No.:079-27912195.

Email : [email protected]

Sept. 2012

Oct. 2012

Nov. 2012

Dec. 2012

Jan. 2013

Feb. 2013

Mar. 2013

Apr. 2013

May 2013

June 2013

July 2013

MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter’s past and future activities

Selected Papers from Bhavnagar Seminar

Slope Stability and Technical Problems in Mining

Mineral Beneficiation and Value Addition

Mines Safety & Risk Management

Investment Opportunities in Mineral Sector in Gujarat

Exploration, Geology & Hydro-geological aspects in Mining.

Contract Mining & MDO

Technical developments in Mine Surveying and Mine Designing

Technological Developments in Mining Machinery

Forest, Environment and CSR in Mines

Latest IT Applications in Mining Sector

Month Topic for Special Issue

Calendar of Special Issues of E-Magazine

Govt. Notification & Circulars

Technical Papers

News About Members

News From The Industry

Land Reclamation & Restoration“A case study of Surkha (N) Lignite Mine, GMDC Ltd, Bhavnagar”

Mine Closure of Lignite Project Mata no Madh, GMDC Ltd. VISION – 2020

Mining and Geological Software for Professionals

1

2

6

8

10

12

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GOVT. NOTIFICATIONSAND CIRCULARS

The MoM has issued directives to the state of Goa in the context of their proposed policy for iron ore dump handling, for inclusion of the following: (I) No new place for dumping overburden, waste, rejects, etc. will be commenced, worked or started without the permission and approval as required

under Chapter III of the Mineral Conservation and Development Rules,1988, considering the principles involved are in the interest of conservation and development of minerals.

All the dump related operations are to be invariably a part of Mining Plan / Scheme of Mining. The details of operations for removal of such dumps need to be shared with IBM along with balance stock remaining in the dump.

(ii) Rule 64 C of the Mineral Concession Rules, 1960 provides that in case dumped tailings or rejects of minerals are used for sale or consumption on any later date after the date of such dumping, then such tailings or rejects should be charged royalty.

(iii) Since the dumps are a result of mining operations and that dump handling involves impact on environment, appropriate environmental clearance and other clearances, as part of the clearance of mining operations of the identified owner of the dumps, should be pre-requisite.

(iv) No dump removal should be permitted unless these activities are captured and are in compliance to Rule 45 of the MCDR, 1988 [w.r.t compulsory registration and reporting of all the mineral transaction].

Ministry of Mines issues directives w.r.t. Policy for Dump Mining:[Ref. Letter no. F.No.8(3)/2011-MV 2nd July 2012; available on MOM website]

MOEF Notification regarding Narayan Sarovar Wildlife Sanctuary: [S.O. 1257 (E) dated 31st May, 2012, available of MOEF website]

The central Government notified the area up to 2.5 km from the boundary of the protected area of Narayan Sarovar Wildlife Sanctuary, enclosed within

the boundary described in the State of Gujarat as the Eco-sensitive Zone.

The range of Eco-sensitive Zone is 0-2.5 kms on all sides and mean distance is 1.5 km surrounding the Protected Area. It covers a peripheral area of

about 22588 hectares which includes 28 villages of Lakhpat Taluka, two villages of Abdasa Talula and one village of Nakhtrana Taluka of Kutch district. It

is divided in two sub-zones within the buffer zone of 2.5 km from the outer boundary of the Sanctuary:

• Sub-Zone A: The area within the buffer of 2.5 km, where the drainage lines towards the sanctuary. This sub-zone will be a part of the catchments’ area and due to the pervious nature of rocks, water borne pollutants will have more effect on the ground water.

• Sub-Zone B: The area where drainage lines travel outwardly away from the sanctuary area, moreover the rocks in this area are relatively impervious.

No mining and crushing shall be allowed within the radius of 3 kms from the boundary of the Narayan Sarovar Wildlife Sanctuary, as per the direction of

Hon’ble Supreme Court order dated 7th May 2010.

Extraction of ground water for bona-fide agricultural and domestic consumption of the occupier of the land shall be allowed but for industrial or

commercial use shall require prior written permission from the State Ground Water Board.

No person shall use plastic carry bag within the Eco-sensitive zone area and disposal of plastic articles shall be strictly regulated.

No untreated or industrial effluent shall be permitted to be discharged into any water body or on land within the Eco-sensitive Zone and treated effluent

shall meet the provisions of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.

No new industrial development within 500 m of the periphery of the Sanctuary shall be allowed. Only non-polluting industries shall be allowed beyond

500 m periphery in the eco-fragile area shall be considered with the provision of a minimum of 50 m wide green belt.

As pee the Annexure III of the Notification, referring to the directives of the Hon’ble Supreme Court order dated 6th may 2010, there shall not be

allowed any mining operations within the radius of 3 kms from the outer boundary of the ‘Narayan Sarovar Chinkara Sanctuary’.

AhmedabadChapter

www.meaiahd.comMEAI | Ahmedabad Chapter | Sept. 2012 | Vol 11

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TECHNICAL PAPERS

Mining activities are indeed associated with the huge devastation of Land. As the site specific considerations of the project it also involves the Land

acquisition practices, which directly affects the land loser and thus to environment. Looking out to the need of the present scenario and an

approach to sustainable mining, GMDC Ltd, Bhavnagar project has conducted a case study regarding the Land Reclamation & Restoration. In this

paper, the work carried out for the reclamation & restoration practices, at GMDC Ltd, Bhavnagar Project has been figured out especially keeping in

mind the needs and issues raised by the villagers (Land Losers). Mainly the issues of degradation of agriculture land and Gauchar Land has been

dealt in the present study with the key emphasis on the better hood of Local villagers and Land losers.

Land Reclamation & Restoration

“A case study of Surkha (N) Lignite Mine, GMDC Ltd, Bhavnagar”1A.K.Garg and Gunjan Pande

1. General Manager (Project), GMDC Ltd. Lignite Project Bhavnagar

2. Trainee Engineer (Environment), GMDC Ltd. Lignite Project Bhavnagar

Email: [email protected], [email protected]

2

Abstract

1. Introduction

GMDC Limited is a public sector undertaking of Govt. of Gujarat. Corporation possesses 3672 ha lignite mine lease in village Surkha, Taluka Ghogha, District Bhavnagar of Gujarat. Surka (North) Lignite Mine is situated 15 km away from Bhavnagar city. Surkha (N) Lignite Mine Project has received the EC from MoEF on Dtd 07 May 2007 for the rated capacity of 3 MTPA and received the GPCB Consent to operate on Dtd: 30.09.2008.

1.1 Salient Features of Project

1. Mineral work : Lignite2. Nearest Railway station : Bhavnagar3. Total Lease area : 3672 hectors4. Commencement of Project : 05/04/20085. Lignite dispatch started : 14/12/20086. Total Lignite reserves : 70.00 Million Tones7. Average Stripping ratio : 1 : 10.15

2. Land Details of GMDC

The total Lease area of 3672 Ha is being divided into two blocks; Block A & Block The Statistical data is shown in Fig.1.

GMDC Ltd has received the approved Mine plan from Ministry Of Coal (Govt. of India) for the open Cast working for the capacity rated as 3MTPA for the Block A.

Since the Lignite seam is deep seated in the Block B therefore various studies are undergoing for Block B and this block has been proposed for Underground Coal gasification.

Total Lease Area : 3672 Ha

Block A: Mining by Opencast Mining Method

Pit Area : 938.40 HaExt. Dump Area : 321.65 Ha

Block B: Lignite Deep Seated;

Exploitation possible by Underground gasification

2.1 Land Degradation to be proposed by Mining activity of GMDC

According to the studies made so far 1260.05 Ha of land has been figured out to be degraded by the Mining Activity of GMDC, with the pit Area of 938.4 Ha and outside Dump Area of 321.65 Ha.

Fig 1: Satellite Imagery of Surkha (N) Lignite Mine in 2009

AhmedabadChapter

www.meaiahd.comMEAI | Ahmedabad Chapter | Sept. 2012 | Vol 12

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2.2 Land Proposed to be reclaimed at the closure of Mine

The proposed area of 1260.05 ha is proposed to be reclaimed under the Green cover and water bodies. The pit area which constitutes 938.4 Ha, is supposed to be reclaimed 831.4 Ha under the green cover and rest 107 Ha will constitute the water bodies.The outside dump area constitutes 321.65 Ha which whole will be reclaimed with the native species of the Bhavnagar region.

TECHNICAL PAPERS

3. Identification for “The Need of Reclamation in Mining Industry”

As a well known fact the mining activities directly influence the deterioration of land, water and air. With the site specific considerations of the project it directly involves the acquisition of Land and it generally includes large amount of Agriculture and Gauchar Land. Hence the direct effect is on the Land loser. He louses his livelihood due to the loss in agriculture land as well as Gauchar Land.

This not only generates the high Reluctance & unrest among the villagers at the time of Land acquisition, but also triggers various other nuisances during the working activities of the project. Hence as a result projects are delayed, which directly affects the growth of industry and hence the development of nation.

4. Present Status of Land Reclaimed in Bhavnagar Project till 2012

GMDC is always committed for the conservation and protection of Environment along with the clear vision of corporate social responsibilities. Not only have, we realized the fact that Instead of the past, the present scenario of Land Acquisition is much furious because of the huge degradation of Land in the past decades, but we are in continual effort for solving out the various issues raised by the villages in lieu of land or environment.

Primarily apart from the conceptual themes of Reclamation we have set our goal which directly goes in favour of the Land losers and the local villagers. Apart from suitable compensation & applicable laws it becomes the utmost requirement to reclaim and restore the land in a proper way which can be useful to the villagers. This not only will generate a sense of reliability on the industry but confidence among villagers for the industrial growth.

The present status of Land use for the mining activity in Block A is as under:

Pit Area : 120.0 Ha

[Under Active Mining : 58.27 HaUnder Reclamation by In-pit Dumping : 61.73 Ha]

Ext. Dump Area : 130.5 Ha

Till 2012, the maximum of the available area has brought under

afforestation cover. Presently 45 Ha of Plain terrain area is under the

green blanket in the lease area. The backfilled area of 61.73 Ha will

soon be under the restoration practice after achieving the sufficient

ground level.

The outside dump area of 15 ha is available for reclamation in which

10 Ha of Dump area has been reclaimed yet.The reclamation in the External Dump area has been commenced

from the year 2011. The vegetation along with the development of

gauchar land, small water aquifers and Picnic spot and sports ground

etc have been established here. The Fig. 2 is showing the Pictorial

view of External Dump under the reclamation. With the view of sustainable mining approach right from the year of

commencement of project the vegetation practices got in to the

shape. Fig.6 is showing the year wise plantation with the average

survival rate of 70 % in the consecutive years.

Fig.2: Progressive Dump ReclamationDump Under Progressive Reclamation from 2011

Fig.3: Our Mission: Go Green ‘Plant a Tree’

www.meaiahd.comMEAI | Ahmedabad Chapter | Sept. 2012 | Vol 13

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TECHNICAL PAPERS

Water Body for Cattle on Dump

Fig.8: Dump Slopes with Karad Grass Fig.9: Aloevera on Dump Slopes

Charal Plantation along Bench Periphery

5.2 Goal No. 2: Water conservation: Development of Fantastic Water Harvesting System in & around Mines

As mining operations are well known for the huge degradation of Land and the direct effect is on farmers due to the degradation & Loss of Land. They Loss their livelihood due to loss of agriculture & grazing Land and this generates high Reluctance & unrest among the villagers at the time of Land acquisition. Hence projects are delayed, which directly affects the growth of industry and hence the nation’s development.

• Line of Action to achieve the goal:

Deepening of Check dams in the nearby villages (Malpar, Thordi, Tagadi etc).

Rain water harvesting: channel of 1.5 km long and 15 m wide all along the Thordi -Tagadi Road.

Ground water recharging structures check dams, Cause ways on seasonal Nallahs.

Regular monitoring for the ground water level.

Reuse of Sump Water

www.meaiahd.comMEAI | Ahmedabad Chapter | Sept. 2012 | Vol 14

5. “Looking out to the vulnerable points and emerging problems in mining industry we have set the following goals for reclamation and restoration of Land”.

5.1 Goal No. 1: Development of Gauchar Land on Dump

As mining operations are well known for the huge degradation of Land and the direct effect is on farmers due to the degradation & Loss of Land. They Loss their livelihood due to loss of agriculture & grazing Land and this generates high Reluctance & unrest among the villagers at the time of Land acquisition. Hence projects are delayed, which directly affects the growth of industry and hence the nation’s development.

As the Gauchar land issue is the hot “talk of the town” & a sensitive issue all over India, we have started developing the dump area primarily as Gauchar land.

• Line of Action to achieve the goal:

Grass sowing on Dump Slopes along with Aloevera Cultivation. The native species of “Karad” grass is sown on dumps slopes so as to provide the cattle a better fodder.

Laying of Coir Mats on Dump slopes to control soil erosion & hence better Slope stability for plants cultivation.

Procured 2000 Tree guards to primarily protect the native species (Neem, Peepal etc) from Neelgai. These plants serve as best fodder to the cattle.

Developed a Water body on each Dump to serve cattle for drinking water in summers also.

Page 8: Vol. 1 | No. 1 | Monthly | September 2012 Ahmedabad …meaiahd.com/pdf/megazine/emag_vol1.pdfTo, Shri A. L. Thakore Chairman, Mining Engineers’ Association Ahmadabad Chapter, Ahmadabad

TECHNICAL PAPERS

5.3 Goal No. 3: Development of Miscellaneous utilities on Reclaimed Dump

As mining operations are well known for the huge degradation of Land and the direct effect is on farmers due to the degradation & Loss of Land.

They Loss their livelihood due to loss of agriculture & grazing Land and this generates high Reluctance & unrest among the villagers at the time of Land acquisition. Hence projects are delayed, which directly affects the growth of industry and hence the nation’s development.

• Line of Action to achieve the goal:

1) Development of Picnic Spot for the Nearby Villages2) Development of Cricket Playground at the top of dump3) Designed a Circular Pond with water fall4) Better Aesthetic view of the place by development of

Flower beds

Check Dam in Thordi Village Rain Water Harvested Channel along Tagadi-Thordi Road

Snap shot of Reclaimed Area

Picnic & Sport organized @ Dump for GMDC Employee’s Family

Floral Bloom in Dump Area

6. Future Plans of GMDC Ltd. Bhavnagar Project

i) Development of Good Gauchar Land with facility of Drinking water to Cattle.

ii) To develop a better Agriculture Land.

iii) To develop a Herbal Garden/ Botanical Garden (Education centre for Botany)

iv) Establish the reclaimed area as s best Tourism place in Gujarat

Boating in the harvested water body Development of Pisciculture Children Park with playing equipment Development of Rest Huts with in the Dump

v) Involvement of Locals in the Developmental path.

7. Conclusion

GMDC Ltd. Bhavnagar Project has taken various steps in the betterment of Villagers and

environment as well. Looking out to the future needs and challenges and as per the requirement of Legislation we will consistently be in the path of development. As always our mission is to satisfy the various issues of the Local villagers. With the present development work of GMDC, we are continuously receiving the positive feedback and appraisal of our work by the Sarpanchs’ of our Core Villages.

[The paper was presented in the Seminar on 'Mining Mine Closure & Sustainable Development' organised by Bhavnagar Local Centre of MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter on 18th August 2012 at Bhavnagar]

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TECHNICAL PAPERS

Mining is one of the most important wealth creating activities equally important as agriculture is for our country. With the advent of rapid

industrialization, a huge demand for coal and other minerals is created in the recent years. Thus, balancing the adverse effect of mining activities

on the ecosystem is a challenging task and requires specific attention.

Through this paper the author has proposed his vision towards the planning of mine closure of lignite project mata no madh, GMDC Ltd by the year

2020 with a unique vision of giving back to the society by developing mine lease area as a educational arena particularly focusing on young

upcoming Mining Engineering students, Environmentalists, geologists etc. with tourist attraction as well.

Mine Closure of Lignite Project Mata no Madh, GMDC Ltd. VISION – 2020

P.K. Samantray, (G.M. (P) I/c, Lignite project Mata no madh, GMDC Ltd.)

Abstract

Introduction

Lignite Project Mata no madh situated besides a religious pilgrimage and surrounded by natural bounty serves as a backbone for many industries 1 inKutch region by providing good quality raw lignite to them. With the time and depletion of lignite resource the project is assumed to be closed by the year

2020. Ministry of Coal, Govt. of India has recently issued some guidelines for preparation of Mine Closure Plan vide Circular no: 55011-01-2009-CPAM

dated January 11, 2012 apart from that there are several recommendations from different forums for the mine closure but, all these recommendations

generally focus towards financial security for the mine closure and restoration of area and other socio-economic constraints as per classical pattern with

a time scheduling of abandonment of mines. The author felts for the same that why the mine should be called abandoned, why to waste such a huge

infrastructural facilities by decommissioning it.

Thus the author has came up with a proposed vision to maintain the liveliness of the project even after the closure of the mines through best utilization of

existing infrastructure and converting the mining lease area as an educational place with promotion of tourism as well, thus contributing the

development of state Gujarat even after exhaust of resource by setting up an example as model mines providing training to young engineering students,

visitors and promoting tourism of the state as well. Indeed a unique approach towards sustainability.

Proposed Planning for the mine closure of the project

As per the guidelines of Ministry of Coal, a progressive mine closure as well as final mine closure planning need to be prepared and implemented in a

phasewise manner in the coming years.

The guidelines provided by the regulatory authorities talks about financial security via opening of an escrow account very well, they do mentions about

land restoration/reclamation/rehabilitation, water quality management etc. But, certainly there is severe lack of specific guidelines about how the

landscape look alike, what is the acceptable restoration practice need to be followed, community welfare security.

Thereby author here proposes a novel approach towards benefitting the community specially targeting young engineering students, socio economy

upliftment.

The present lease area of the lignite project Mata no madh extends to 1752.6156 Ha with a balance reserve of 18 Million Ton and it is estimated that the

project will come to an end with the resources by the year 2020.

It is proposed to convert this mine to a visiting place for Mining Engineering students of not only from Gujarat but also from all across the India. Mining

Engineering students will get all information about an opencast mining during their academic career. The entire lease area after mining will be converted

in to a tourist place from educational point of view specifically for mining as well as Environment engineering students, geologists, academic researchers

etc.

The project itself has enough facilities such as infrastructure, source of electricity, water which will be best utilized after mining process is over.

Thrust Areas

• The area for thrust will be preparation of a Training Gallery which provides sequence wise Mining operation process to the visitors with pictorial representation creating a virtual image in their mind about aspects and impacts of mining activity along with detailed working and unit processes required. The training gallery will also contain Yearwise pictorial representation of mine development imparting an idea about the advance planning required in operating a mine. It will also include pictorial representations of Mine safety, hazard free mining operations, and equipment safety with all precautionary measures.

• A model room is also proposed where all the machineries/equipments required in the mining process shall be displayed. It will also contain information about the maintenance procedures, operational parameters, safety features, output, efficiency of heavy earth moving machinery.

• Information about the pre-mining activities, Geology and geo-hydrological data of the area including required permissions, relaxations, and exemptions, statuary applications to be made at various legal and regulatory authorities is proposed to be made available under a common roof. Roles and responsibilities of different functional division shall also be provided

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TECHNICAL PAPERS

• Basic Mine planning features, safety practices, Code of practices/standing orders/by-laws/ self regulations to be framed for an opencast mines. Records, reports, registers to be maintained during mining processes.

• Risk assessment & safety management system for the opencast mines.

• Case study of some mine disasters, rescue processes & recommendations of the enquiry committee will also be made available for academiciansand students along with video lecture module facility for visiting students at a projector room.

• Tourism promotion with a boating facility at constructed Rainwater harvesting pond and dense forest development on reclaimed land upto the top of the stabilized external Overburden dump.

The best utilization of the area and available infrastructural resources:

There is no need to construct or spent money for any kind of infrastructure required for the same purpose.

• The present administrative building shall be utilized for the caretakers room / instructors room as well as room for the staff required. Along with few rooms as a dormitory providing 2-3 days stay to the visitors.

• The main store building can be utilized as the site for the proposed training gallery.• The workshop area itself is sufficient enough to cater as the model room.• Time office/ SIC office will be used as a restaurant where refreshment arrangement can be made.• A beautiful garden in front of the Administrative building with proof of fossils & the rock mass handled during the mining process.• A kitchen garden where vegetables for the self consumption of the staff will be available. • A boating facility will be there in the water body constructed by harvesting rain water with a walkway for the pedestrians surrounding the water

body, thereby promoting the tourism point for the visitors.• A 10KM long driving lane starting from the mouth of the reclaimed pit up to the external dump covering the entire backfilled areas surrounded by

dense forest (plantation)

Sustainableinputs

The additional inputs for running the infrastructural facilities such as electricity and water resource are also planned accordingly. The electricity required

will be available from Solar powered roof top panels (20 Kwh capacity) presently mounted over the administrative building at present. Facility for drinking

water will came from R.O. plant inside the administrative building itself whereas source of raw water for it shall be provided from connected pond

completely harvested by rainwater.

The same pond (present capacity of 3.2 lakh cu.m. water storage) is presently catering all the water requirements for the plantation development, and

further planned to be serve with boating facility as well.

Genesis of the notion

The idea came in picture when the author observe that we people in GMDC are always giving the examples of other mining companies like CIL, NLC,

TISCO, NMDC etc. But is it so difficult that peoples of other companies will not refer GMDC in the days to come? That’s why we will take it as a challenge

& we will show the ability of our in house team & to become an example for others.

Apart from that several seminars/ conferences attained by the author were unable to describe what exactly to be done in mine closure plan. So is not it is

going to be a best mine closure?

Fortunately the author also got the opportunity for being a visiting faculty to an Engineering college of Gujarat Government in the last few years.

Surprisingly students of 6th/7th semester have very shallow knowledge about the basic mining and field practices. Also it is true that no institute teaches

about the field applications, reality of mining. This gives the birth to an idea for providing an entire life cycle of a mining process which will be helpful for

them in their future growth. This can be shaped best by inclusion of such a facility in the mine closure plan itself thus benefitting the young engineers as

well and shall invite Mining engineering students from all across the India under a one roof imparting all the necessary knowledge about the mining

industry.

Agencies to be involved

With the help of Gujarat State Information bureau, Gujarat State Tourism, and Gujarat State Directorate of Technical Education and Training we can put

our hands together to shape the proposed goal.

Conclusion

Restoration and development activities are not a matter of single day it demands inputs right from the beginning and hence we have already started to

preserve working condition photographs, timeline of land use, collection of various statuary and legal requirements, sustainable inputs development.Thus it can be concluded that constant effort and a clear vision always lead towards fruitful results. The Author hopes that the proposed Mine closure

activities can set up a BENCHMARK for the whole MINING INDUSTRY and include our name in Trendsetters, not just a mere followers.

[The paper was presented in the Seminar on 'Mining Mine Closure & Sustainable Development' organised by Bhavnagar Local Centre of MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter on 18th August 2012 at Bhavnagar]

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TECHNICAL PAPERS

Mining and Geological Software for Professionals

Easha Kothari, Priyanka Bhoi, Jagdish Wadher, Chandresh Parmar

(Student Members, MEAI Ahmedabad Chapter)

Geology Department, M. G. Science Institute, Ahmedabad.

Introduction

Presently, any kind of mining activity requires various computer softwares, which makes the mining operations easy. We as students, feel that the

professionals involved in mining, though already aware about the softwares, there are certain latest additions in the list. This will help the mining

professionals to know more about the softwares listed below.

About Mining Software

Mining software assists open pit/cut and underground mines with everything from planning and design to the management of operations for all phases of

a mining operation. Other features include geological modeling, survey data calculations, resource estimations, pit and underground mine designs,

asset management, scheduling and reporting. For related products see Oil and Gas, Fixed Asset Management, and Land Survey.

Details of different software

(1) Promine

It is an AutoCAD integrated software program for the mining and geology industry. It is divided into specialized add-ons that each perform a specific

geological, exploration or mine development task. These add-ons range from geological mapping, reserve estimation and resource modeling to

development planning, drill and blast design and surveying.

Explore and define

• Plan a diamond drilling campaign. • Make 3D geological models. • Calculate resources with various estimation methods.• Build a geological block model.

Plan and schedule

• Plan drifts and raises.• Schedule development.• Build a production overlook from scheduled development and stopes.• Build 3D planning models.

Mine and follow operations

• Update drawings with survey data.• Model actual development: drifts, raises, room and pillar, surfaces, benches, etc.• Plan production drilling and blasting.• Cut sections in any orientation.• Manage drawings.

Share and distribute

• Create layouts and print.• View planned and current development in 3D.• Create animated 3D presentations.• Exchange data with other software.

(2) CAE Mining (DATAMINE)

CAE Mining offers an unparalleled solution footprint for the entire mine planning cycle. State-of-the-art systems are fully scalable and can be used by

global mining houses on multi-site implementations, by a single mine site with specific needs, and by everyone in between.

Applications

• Exploration • Geology• Mine Strategy • Mine Design and scheduling• Operational Mine Plan • Geological Data Management System• Reserve Management System • Mine Safety Solutions• Mine Production etc

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TECHNICAL PAPERS

(3) Carlson Mining 2013

Applications

• Geology Module • Underground Mining Module • Surface Mining Module• Basic Mining Module • Carlson Top Ten List • Pricing Structure• System Requirements • User List • On-Line Manual• Mining Brochure (PDF) • Movies • Download

(4) Mine Site Geology and Geotechnical Mapping Software

MineGeo software for real time mine geology and geotechnical mapping in 3D you 'get' the complete picture.

(5) Gemcom Surpac

It is the world’s most popular geology and mine planning software, supporting open pit and underground operations and exploration projects in more

than 110 countries. The software delivers efficiency and accuracy through ease-of-use, powerful 3D graphics and workflow automation that can be

aligned to company-specific processes and data flows.

Surpac Benefits

• Comprehensive tools include: drillhole data management, geological modelling, block modelling, geostatistics, mine design, mine planning, resource estimation, and more.

• Surpac is modular and easily customised.• Surpac reduces data duplication by connecting to relational databases and interfacing with common file formats from GIS, CAD and other

systems.• Integrated production scheduling with Gemcom MineSched™.• Multilingual support: English, Chinese, Russian, Spanish, German and French.

(6) MineMap - Mine Planning Software

At any stage of the mining cycle MineMap assists in making those critical decisions by providing all the required tools to effectively manage all mine

planning, geological and survey requirement. So versatile is MineMap that it has been successfully used in exploring, developing and mining both Open

Pit/Cut and Underground Operations for a variety of commodities including:

• Metalliferous-precious and base metals • Coal • Mineral Sands• Iron Ore • Limestone • Aggregates• Rare Earths • Alluvial Gold • Bauxite• Diamonds• Industrial Minerals

MineMap offers a range of modelling facilities. Enabling users to select the most appropriate method to model their valuable exploration and mine data,

virtually all commodities and styles of mineralisation can be accurately evaluated.

Easy and practical interpretation of geological data from all 2D and 3D sources allows the creation of accurate geological model.Rapid update of mine

plans from survey data is simple and calculating volumes between any surveyed surfaces is swift.

MineMap™ offers a wide range of: 1. Geological Modelling Capabilities;2. Resource and Reserve Estimation Methods;3. Mine Planning and Design for Open Pit and Underground Mines4. Scheduling and Reporting Capabilities.

List of Other Important software

• Coal Software & Systems - Production System • Minemax - iGantt Suite of software products that can run "stand alone" or fully integrated to Handles the complexities of mine optimization, planning and scheduling for eliminate double or triple entry of data. both open pit and underground operations.

• eIndia systems - eGEM • QMASTOR - Pit to Port Software for granite industries to enhance customer service, optimize Mining supply chain software suite including bulk material tracking, mine inventory, increase productivity and improve profitability. logistics management, mine planning and scheduling and more.

• GAEA Technologies - Pocket WinLoG • RockWare - RockWorks Start collecting your borehole data in the field, then transfer to your desktop for Provides geologists and engineers indispensable tools for visualizing their a professional full colored log for your report. surface and sub-surface data.

• Golden Software - Surfer • Runge - Mining Dynamics For advanced gridding, contouring, 2D and 3D surface mapping and terrain A visual system to support data management and discovery across the entire modeling of XYZ data into publication-quality maps. production chain from modeling to reconciliation.

• Landpro - Visual LandPro 2000 • Rocscience - Phase2 Provides oil & gas, mining, land owners, and land service companies with the Can be used for a wide range of projects and includes support design, finite tools to record and manage land inventory and history element slope stability, and more.

• Matrikon - Matrikon Mine to Port Supports the entire mining operation, including ore source management, material tracking, planning & scheduling and much more

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GMDC promotes Shri P. K. Samantray and Shri R. K. Dash as General Managers

GMDC has recently promoted Shri P K Samanray and Shri R K Dash as General Manager (Project) and have posted them as the project heads at its Lignite Projects at Surkha (North) in Bhavnagar district and Rajpardi in Bharuch districts respectively.

Shri P K Samantray

Shri Samantray acquired Diploma in Mining Engg. from Orissa school of Mining Engg. in 1993 and then obtained AMIE from Institution of Engineers (India), Kolkata in1999. He acquired First Class Mine managers certificate Of Competency (Coal) in 2004 and also did Post graduate Diploma in Computer Application in 2005 He started his carrier In Coal India Limited in 1996 and joined GMDC Ltd at Tadkeshwar Project in 2006 as Safety Officer in the capacity of Dy GM. He was given independent charge of Mata No madh Lignite Mine in 2009 as Agent cum Mine Manager.

He received “Best Mine Manager” Award in the Yr-2009 & again in the Yr 2011 in Gujarat Lignite Mine Safety Week. During his tenure at Mata no Madh, the mine won the prestigious National Safety Award in the Yr 2009 & again in 2010.

He is now promoted by GMDC and posted as general Manager at Lignite Project Surkha (North) Project in Bhavnagar district.

Shri R. K. Dash

Shri R. K. Dash did his Diploma (Hon’s) in Mining Engineering followed by AMIE (Mining) (Batch Topper) and M.Sc. (Ecology & Environment) in First Class. He then acquired First Class Manager’s Certificate of Competency in July 2006.

He worked as Technical Service Engineer for ICI Limited (Deep hole Blasting in OCP’S) for 2 years and then with Mahanadi Coalfield Limited (Underground Mining) for about 3 years before joining GMDC in 2006 in the capacity of Dy GM (Mines). He was working as Mines Manager at Panandhro Lignite Mine of GMDC and is now promoted as General Manager at Rajpardi Mine in Bharuch district.

Shri Ratin D. Desai promoted as Dy. General Manager (Geology)

Shri Desai did his post graduation (M Sc) in Geology from M S University Vadodara and joined GMDC as Geologist at Lignite Mines at Rajpardi. He has worked a number of Lignite Mines of the Company (GMDC) and was last posted as Senior Manager (Geology) at Tadkeshwar Lignite Mine. He is now promoted as Dy General Manager (Geology) and is posted at Surkha (North) Lignite Mine in Bhavnagar.

Shri Pulak A. Mathur promoted as Dy General Manager (Mining)

After graduating in Mining Engineering from Raipur, Shri Pulak joined GMDC at Lignite Project in Kutch in 1997. He was later shifted to Bauxite Project Gadhsisa. He recently qualified for First Class Managers’ (Restricted) Certificate of competency under MMR and is now promoted by GMDC to the post of Dy GM (Mines) and is posted at Bauxite Project at Bhatia in Jamnagar district as the Project In-charge.

NEWS ABOUT MEMBERS AhmedabadChapter

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NEWS ABOUT MEMBERS

Members relocated

Following MEAI members, working with GMDC are recently transferred to the Company’s other projects and are thus relocated:

Opening of Students’ Chapter at MG Science Institute, Ahmedabad

SN

1

2

3

4

Name

Shri C R Patel

Shri A K Garg

Shri H K Joshi

Shri G K Patel

Designation

General Manager

General Manager

(Also Vice Chairman,

Ahmedabad Chapter)

General Manager

Dy GM (Mines) & I/c GM

Old Location

Panandhro, Dist. Kutch

Surkha (North) Dist. Bhavnagar

Rajpardi, Dist Bharuch

Shivarajpur, Dist. Vadodara

New Location

Shivrajpur, Dist. Vadodara

Mata no Madh, Dist. Kutch

Panandhro, Dist Kutch

Gadhsisa, Dist. Kutch

Following members, who were deputed by GMDC to the Western Coalfields Ltd. to acquire required experience in underground coal mines for validation

of their statutory First Class Managers’ certificates under the Coal Mines Regulations, have returned to their parent mines / projects after completing

their training.

Name

Shri Sanjay Mathur

Shri B A Joshi

Shri Akhilesh K Singh

Shri S C Jhagrawat

Designation

Sr Manager (Mines)

-do-

-do-

-do-

Location of Training

Pench Area, WCL

Dist Chhindwara MP

-do-

Kanhan Area, WCL,

Dist. Chhindwara (MP)

-do-

Back at (Location)

Surkha (North)

Dist Bhavnagar

Mata no Madh Dist. Kutch

Surkha (North), Dist Bhavnagar

Rajpardi, Dist Bharuch

SN

1

2

3

4

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NEWS FROM THE INDUSTRY AhmedabadChapter

GMDC Achieves 16% rise in Lignite production:

GMDC is operating 5 Lignite mines; Panandhro & Mata no Madh in Kutch District, Surkha (North) in Bhavnagar district, Rajpardi in Bharuch District and Tadkeshwar in Surat district. The Company produced 48.08 Lac Tonnes Lignite from these mines till the month of August 2012 in the current financial year 2012-13 as against 41.51 Lac Tonnes in the corresponding period during 2011-12. The Company thus achieved 15.83% growth.

The quarter-wise performance has been as under:

1st Quarter (April to June)

2nd Quarter(July & August)

TOTAL(April to August)

33.72

14.36

48.08

30.37

11.14

41.51

2.35

3.22

5.57

Period2012-13 2011-12 Increase

Lignite Production in Lac Tonnes

12.93

28.90

15.83

Percentage Increase

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