Draft Bill vests powers entirely in Geological Survey of India, say expert

Source: The post is based on the article “Draft Bill vests powers entirely in Geological Survey of India, say expert” published in The Hindu on 14th February 2023.

What is the News?

The Ministry of Mines has introduced a Draft Geo-heritage Sites and Geo-relics (Preservation and Maintenance) Bill,2022.

What is the purpose of the Bill?

The Bill is aimed at protecting India’s geological heritage that includes fossils, sedimentary rocks and natural structures.

What are the Key Provisions of the Bill?

The Bill vests powers entirely in the Geological Survey of India(GSI) to 1) Declare sites as having ‘geo-heritage’ value, 2) take possession of relics (fossils, rocks) that rest in private hands, 3) prohibit construction 100 metres around such a site and 4) penalize — with fines up to ₹5 lakh and possibly imprisonment — vandalism, defacement and violations of directives of a site by the Director General of GSI.

What are the concerns with the Bill?

According to Geoscientists, rather than having all authority in the Director General, GSI, there needs to be a broader committee of experts from a wider range of institutions. This would mean that the interests and difficulties faced by researchers, who actually work in the field are kept in mind.

Moreover, GSI is not equipped to handle the task of geoheritage conservation, as it is primarily a research body that works on various missions.

What are Geo-Heritage sites?

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