Ministry of Steel & Mines Minister Shri Narendra Singh Tomar called on Chief Minister, Karnataka Shri Siddaramaiah in Belgaum, Karnataka on 7th July 2015, to deliberate on steel and mines related issues in the state of Karnataka. Tomar stated that auction rules and draft tender documents for auction of mines have been issued. He requested the state government to expedite the auction process so that mining activity gets a boost and state gets more revenue. Shri Tomar informed about the plan to set up a steel plant in the state of Karnataka through a Special Purpose Vehicle and reiterated the commitment of central government to the plan. He further added, “In addition to 13 blocks identified by the state for ML and 9 blocks for PL-cum-ML, action should also be initiated for auction of leases for mines in cases where Supreme Court has cancelled the leases. More areas under mineralization should be identified for auction. For exploration of such areas, central undertakings viz. GSI and MECL shall provide all assistance. Centre and state government must decide the future course of action in case of Bharat Gold Mines Limited. Quick action also needs to be taken for setting up of District Mineral Foundation in different districts.” Issue of reservation of mine for VISL, Bhadravati also came up for discussion. Shri Siddaramaiah expressed gratitude to Shri Tomar for the visit. He assured active consideration and positive action in respect of issues that came up for discussion during the meeting. Senior officials from Ministry of Steel, Ministry of Mines and office of Chief Minister were present during the meeting.