Why in news?

Parliament has passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, reigniting a long-standing tussle between the Centre and states over the taxation of mineral resources and the revenues they generate.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• What Does the Amendment Change?
• Background: The Supreme Court's 2024 Ruling
• Centre's Rationale
• Need for a Balanced Approach
• Conclusion

What Does the Amendment Change?

• The Bill restricts states from imposing specified levies on mineral rights and mineral-bearing land.
• This comes even as several mineral-rich states had begun exploring such levies following the Supreme Court's landmark 2024 ruling that upheld states' power to tax mineral rights.
• The Bill will also extinguish unpaid or unrecovered dues arising from such levies imposed before it comes into force — estimated at around Rs 2 lakh crore across the mining sector.
• According to the Mines Ministry, around 14 levies currently exist in the mineral sector; these will continue, but their cumulative burden will be capped at a percentage to be decided after consultation with states.

Background: The Supreme Court's 2024 Ruling

• In July 2024, the Supreme Court upheld states' power to levy taxes on mineral rights and mineral-bearing land, overruling the 1989 judgment in India Cement Ltd v. State of Tamil Nadu.
  • The 1989 judgement had held that royalty was a tax falling under the Union List, beyond states' legislative competence.
• The 2024 ruling also waived interest and penalties on pre-judgment tax demands and allowed staggered payment of dues over 12 years from April 1, 2026.
• This opened the door for states to raise additional mining revenue — Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu introduced Mineral-Bearing Land (MBL) taxes, while Karnataka proposed a tax on non-auctioned iron ore mines.
  • Jharkhand's MBL tax on iron ore rose from Rs 100 to Rs 400 per tonne.
  • Tamil Nadu imposed an MBL tax of Rs 160 per tonne on limestone.

Centre's Rationale

• The Centre argues that unchecked state-level levies raise the cost of key minerals, feeding into inflation and infrastructure costs.
• Mining industry experts note that beyond royalty, companies already pay District Mineral Foundation and National Mineral Exploration Trust contributions, along with environmental and pollution cesses — with the MBL tax seen as the largest additional burden.
• Industry voices argue the amendments provide fiscal certainty without causing material revenue loss to states, since many of these levies have been under legal dispute for decades.

States' Opposition and Revenue Concerns

• Jharkhand: CM of Jharkhand has cited potential revenue loss. In a letter to the Prime Minister, he stated mining revenue formed about 84.9% of the state's own non-tax revenue in 2024-25, with the Mineral Bearing Land Cess alone expected to generate around Rs 11,000 crore annually.
• Kerala: The govt has raised concerns over implications for India's federal structure.
• Data on dependence
  • As per the CAG report on state finances, states' own non-tax revenue stood at Rs 3.3 lakh crore in 2024-25, of which 41% (Rs 1.36 lakh crore) came from mineral and petroleum receipts.
  • Nationally, this forms just 3.4% of states' revenue receipts, but the share is far higher for mineral-rich states: 23% for Odisha, 13% for Jharkhand, and 5% for Chhattisgarh.

Need for a Balanced Approach

• Experts caution against framing the issue as a binary choice between competitive mining and state revenues.
• Instead, they recommend the Centre use the new framework to set transparent guardrails through genuine consultation with mineral-producing states, ensuring cost predictability for industry without leaving states fiscally shortchanged.

Conclusion

The Mining Amendment Bill, 2026, revives the classic Centre-state fiscal federalism debate — balancing industry's need for tax certainty against resource-rich states' dependence on mineral revenue for welfare and development.

Its success will hinge on transparent, consultative implementation rather than a one-sided assertion of central authority.

About Loggerhead Sea Turtle:

• It is a species of oceanic turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae.
• Scientific Name: Caretta caretta
• It is the world’s largest hard-shelled turtle, slightly larger at average and maximum mature weights than the green sea turtle and the Galapagos tortoise.
• It is also the world’s second largest extant turtle after the leatherback sea turtle.
• Habitat and Distribution:
  • Loggerheads live in oceans all over the world, except in the coldest seas.
  • The majority of loggerhead nesting occurs in the western rims of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, primarily in Oman, the United States, and Australia.
  • They may be found hundreds of miles out to sea, as well as in inshore areas such as bays, lagoons, salt marshes, and creeks.
• Features:
  • Loggerheads are named for their relatively large heads, which support powerful jaws and enable them to feed on hard-shelled prey, such as whelks and conchs.
  • They have a large, reddish-brown, hard shell; a pale yellow underbelly (or ‘plastron’); and four flippers with two (or sometimes three) claws on each.
  • Adult males are distinguished by long tails that extend beyond the rear carapace and a narrowing of the carapace that tapers towards the rear.
  • They use the geomagnetic field as a map when navigating large distances.
  • Lifespan: Loggerheads can live up to 80 years or more.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Vulnerable.

About Friedreich ataxia (FA):

• It is a rare, inherited disorder that causes progressive damage to the nervous system.
• The damage affects your spinal cord and the nerves that control muscle movement in your arms and legs.
• Cause:
  • It is caused when a gene called FXN becomes mutated.
  • The FXN gene codes for a protein called frataxin. Frataxin is essential for mitochondria, which are our cells’ powerhouses.
  • The chemical ATP, which is the cell’s energy currency, is made mostly in the mitochondria.
  • Nerve, spinal cord, brain, and heart muscle cells use a lot of energy.
  • When their frataxin levels become abnormally low, the mitochondria produce ATP less effectively and also accumulate toxic by-products.
  • This renders the cell dysfunctional, leading to the symptoms of FA.
  • Individuals who inherit two defective copies of the FXN gene, one from each parent, will develop the disease.
  • A person who inherits only one abnormal copy of the gene is called a carrier.
  • Most of the affected individuals come from consanguineous marriages. That is, marriages between relatives, such as uncles and nieces, or between cousins.
• Treatment:
  • There is currently no cure for FA.
  • Treatment focuses on easing symptoms and maintaining comfort and function for as long as possible.

About Mount Elbrus:

• Located in Southern Russia, Mount Elbrus is the highest peak of the Caucasus Mountains.
• Mount Elbrus is the world’s 10^th most prominent peak as well as the highest mountain peak in both the European continent and Russia.
• It is one of the Seven Summits of the world, which are the tallest mountains on each of the seven continents.
• Mount Elbrus is an inactive volcano that consists of two principal summits, both of which are dormant volcanic domes. It is also Eurasia’s highest stratovolcano.
• Formation:
  • It is believed that the Caucasus Mountains were formed due to the northward collision of the Arabian Plate with the Eurasian Plate.
• Major Glaciers: Bolshoi Azaou and Irik Glacier.
• Many Russian rivers like the Baksan, Malka, and Kuban rivers originate from these glaciers.

About Mahadayi River:

• The Mahadayi River, also known as the Mandovi or Mhadei River, is a rain-fed river shared between Karnataka and Goa.
• Course:
  • It originates from the Bhimgad Forest in the Western Ghats, located in the Belagavi district of Karnataka.
  • It flows westward to join the Arabian Sea at Panaji, Goa.
• Panaji, the state capital, and the town of Old Goa are situated on the left bank of the Mandovi River.
  • Near the town of Old Goa, there are three large freshwater islands, Divar, Chorao, and Vashee, in the Mandovi River. The island of Chorao houses Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary.
• It has several tributaries, namely Rogaro, Kushavati, Nanorem, Nanuz, Valvota, and Mapusa.
• The river is central to a decades-long dispute between Karnataka and Goa, primarily over Karnataka’s plans to divert water from the Kalasa and Bhandura tributaries to the Malaprabha basin for drinking water needs.
• The Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal (MWDT) in 2018 allocated 13.42 tmc (380 Mcum) of water to Karnataka, including permissions for limited diversion from the Kalasa (1.72 tmc) and Bhandura (2.18 tmc) streams.

About New Development Bank (NDB):

• The New Development Bank (NDB), formerly known as the BRICS Development Bank, is a multilateral development bank established by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS).
• Objective: NDB aims to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS countries and other emerging economies and developing countries.
• The agreement for establishing the NDB was signed during the BRICS Summit held in Fortaleza, Brazil, on July 15, 2014.
• The bank became operational in 2015 and is headquartered in Shanghai, China, with a regional office in Johannesburg and additional offices later opened in São Paulo and Moscow.
• Membership in NDB is open to any member of the United Nations.
• NDB’s key areas of operation include clean energy and energy efficiency; transport infrastructure; water and sanitation; environmental protection; social infrastructure; and digital infrastructure.
• Capital: Its founding capital was set at USD 100 billion, with initial subscribed capital of USD 50 billion divided equally among the five founding members.
• Governance Structure:
  • The bank is governed by a Board of Governors made up of the finance ministers of the five BRICS countries, and a Board of Directors.
  • Both the presidency and vice-presidency of the NDB are rotated among BRICS founding members.
  • Unlike in the case of the World Bank or Asian Development Bank (ADB), each member in the NDB has an equal voting power.

About Earthquake Swarm:

• Occurrence: It occurs when multiple seismic events of comparable intensity strike a small area in relatively quick succession.
• Intensity: It involves a series of many (sometimes thousands) low-intensity earthquakes without a discernible main shock that can occur over weeks in active geothermal areas.
• When seismic energy piles up inside the Earth and is released in small amounts from certain points, such a series of earthquakes can occur.

What Causes Swarm Sequences?

• Fluid movement:
  • In volcanic environments, this can be fluid released from deeper magma or circulating within active geothermal areas (in volcanic areas such as the Taupō Volcanic Zone).
  • The earthquakes triggered by fluids occur as fault slip on the cracks and faults through which the water is moving.
• Active volcanism:
  • Magma movement can also act as the ‘driving mechanism’ for swarms, creating the earthquakes as magma-filled cracks push their way through the Earth’s crust.
  • In such a case the earthquakes commonly occur near the crack tip (ahead of the magma where the crack is starting to open), or off to the side of the crack.
• Slow-slip events:
  • A slow-slip event is essentially an earthquake in slow-motion, and typically involves centimetres to tens of centimetres of movement along a fault, over weeks to years.
  • It is seen at the Hikurangi subduction zone, usually at least one or two per year.

About Hara Mangrove Forest:

• Location: The Hara forests are a vital ecological treasure of the Persian Gulf, spanning the Strait of Hormuz.
• These mangrove forests consist mainly of grey mangrove trees (Avicennia marina).
• They have a special filtration system in their roots that allows them to thrive in saline conditions.
• The forests are designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
• Ecological Role:
  • The same roots also protect the coast against erosion and are voluminous carbon sinks, sequestering significantly more carbon than terrestrial forests.
  • They serve as an important nursery for marine life as they shelter shrimp, crabs, and numerous fish species that sustain the region’s fisheries.
  • The Hara forests’ canopy is also a major migratory hub for birds like the great stone-curlew and various herons.
  • The mangroves are the backbone of the sustainable tourism programmes of Qeshm, an Iranian island in the Persian Gulf, and draw visitors to their labyrinthine waterways.

About Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope:

• It is NASA’s flagship orbital observatory.
• It is designed to settle essential questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics.
  • Scientists by using this telescope will focus on three main topic areas: dark energy, exoplanets, and dark matter.
• It will provide one of the deepest-ever views into the heart of our Milky Way galaxy.
• It will orbit around a special place in space called the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point, or L2. 
• Objectives: It will monitor hundreds of millions of stars in search of tell-tale flickers that betray the presence of planets, distant stars, small icy objects that haunt the outskirts of our solar system and isolated black holes.
• It will have two instruments:
  • Wide Field Instrument:
    • It is a 300-megapixel infrared camera.
    • It will have a field of view that is 100 times greater than the Hubble infrared instrument, capturing more of the sky with less observing time.
    • It will measure light from a billion galaxies over the course of the mission lifetime.
    • It will perform a microlensing survey of the inner Milky Way to find ~2,600 exoplanets.
  • Coronagraph Instrument:
    • It is a technology demonstration which will perform high contrast imaging and spectroscopy of individual nearby exoplanets.
    • Its Galactic Bulge Time-Domain Survey will focus on the Milky Way.

About SAFTA:

• It is the free trade arrangement of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
• Background: The agreement came into force in 2006, succeeding the 1993 SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement.
• SAFTA signatory countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
• SAFTA recognizes the need for special and differential treatment for LDCs in its preamble.
• Objective: The Objectives of this Agreement are to promote and enhance mutual trade and economic cooperation among Contracting States by, inter-alia:
  • Eliminating barriers to trade in, and facilitating the cross-border movement of goods between the territories of the Contracting States;
  • Promoting conditions of fair competition in the free trade area, and ensuring equitable benefits to all Contracting States, taking into account their respective levels and pattern of economic development;
  • Creating effective mechanism for the implementation and application of this Agreement, for its joint administration and for the resolution of disputes.
  • Establishing a framework for further regional cooperation to expand and enhance the mutual benefits of this Agreement.