India, July 23 -- The concerns of fishermen and local communities on offshore mining will be specifically addressed during the preparation of the production plan and Environmental Management Plan (EMP) during the production phase, the ministry of mines told Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

The ministry of mining has consulted various ministries including the union environment ministry and the department of fisheries before notification of offshore mining blocks for auctioning, the response has said.

One of the requirements for offshore exploration includes preliminary environmental impact assessment (EIA) studies. Thereafter, grant of production lease to Composite License Holder may be considered, it has added.

G Kishan Reddy, minister of mines...