By Bizodisha Bureau, March 26, 2018: The state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) failed to achieve the targeted production of ores during 2012-17. Consequently, it lost opportunity to earn revenue of Rs 1,838.98 crore, said a CAG report tabled in the state assembly on Monday.

The failure to achieve targeted production of ores resulted in shortfall in production of 114.44 lakh metric tonne of iron ore and 2.70 lakh metric tonne of chrome ore, said the Comptroller and Auditor Generals’ report on public sector undertakings for the year ended March 2017.

In case of chrome ore, OMC achieved the production target during 2013-15, but it did not achieve the target in the year 2012-13 and 2015-17. The shortfall in production ranged from 4.80 per cent to 37.78 per cent during three out of five years of operation, it added.

The main reasons for shortfall in production were attributable to non-availability of statutory clearances, inadequate infrastructure for evacuation of produced ore. Space constraints in stockyards were also other factor which contributed for shortfall in production, said the CAG.

Besides, the OMC incurred avoidable expenditure of Rs 138.63 crore due to non-segregation of natural iron ore fines from the crushed iron ore fines, it said, adding that the OMC could not achieve its own target of production of iron ore during any of the five years ending March 31, 2017 and the shortfall ranged from 16.47 per cent to 65.24 per cent during this period.