Kanyakumari mining extension puts TVK in a spot

Madurai: The TVK-led govt has extended the validity of a reservation order granted to IREL (India) Limited for mining beach sand atomic minerals in Kanyakumari by one year, more than a year after the party had resolved to oppose the project.The natural resources department issued an order on June 10, the day the 2021 reservation was to lapse, extending it up to June 2027. The order covers over 2,827 acres in Killiyoor taluk of Kanyakumari district, including Keezhmidalam, Midalam, Enayamputhenthurai, Ezhudesam and Kollengode villages. It permits continuation of steps for mining ilmenite, rutile, leucoxene, zircon, monazite, garnet and sillimanite.The project moved step by step after the ministry of mines reserved the land for IREL (India) Limited (formerly Indian Rare Earths Ltd) on June 11, 2021. IREL sought a mining lease two weeks later while the state asked for environmental clearances. Public hearing was stalled after local residents filed petitions. Later, IREL cited a 2025 MoEFCC exemption for defence and strategic projects. Its coastal regulatory zone (CRZ) application is pending in Nagercoil, while the mines director recommended extension in April 2026, citing the strategic value of atomic minerals.

The order puts TVK in a spot as its executive committee had on Nov 3, 2024 urged the Centre to abandon the Kanyakumari atomic mineral mining project, calling it a dangerous and destructive project that would ruin southern Tamil Nadu.Union coal and mines minister G Kishan Reddy had recently urged Tamil Nadu govt to support land acquisition for critical mineral projects, saying Tamil Nadu’s cooperation was needed.