Closure of Orissa railway sidings hits iron ore supplies

BHUBANESWAR - Supply of iron ore from mines in Orissa’s Keonjhar district has been hit after the authorities closed at least four railway sidings and prohibited loading and unloading of minerals, a Tata Steel official said Saturday.

“Our movement from the Joda siding has been adversely affected” Mohit Das, a Tata Steel spokesperson told IANS.

A senior district mining official said the companies which were using the sidings have been told to transport their minerals by road.

The authorities closed the four sidings earlier this month after more than 300,000 tonnes of unclaimed iron and manganese ore was found in the area.

A crackdown against illegal mining was launched soon after, with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik seeking help from Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren for checking it.