On 5th of October 2012, the top court of the country banned extraction and transportation of Goan iron ore in a bid to clamp down on illegal mining thereby freezing shipments. (Read In Hindi: मोर्मूगांव बंदरगाह पर लौह अयस्क की आवाजाही शुरू)

The Govrnment of Goa had earlier invited bids for sale of about 11 million tons of ore through E-auction lying at various locations following the Supreme Court order. The buyers will be allowed to ship the ore overseas or sell locally. About 2 lakh tons of ore had been lying at Mormugao Port.