Panaji, Jul 13 (IANS): The National Green Tribunal's (NGT) principal bench in Delhi has issued a bailable warrant against Goa's principal secretary for mines and forests while hearing a petition filed by a green NGO against a mining company.

The order was issued Thursday against R.K. Varma, who is in-charge of several key departments like forests, environment, mining and Public Works Department, on account of "failure to comply with the direction" given in an earlier order on May 29 this year.

The NGT has, however, withheld the warrant for a period of one week, during which the state administration is to report compliance to its earlier order, which had directed Varma to depute an officer to personally attend the hearing along with the relevant information.

The bureaucrat's failure to heed the directive has now forced the NGT to issue the bailable warrant, which has also been held in abeyance for a week.

The petitioner, Goa Paryavaran Sangharsh Samiti, has accused a mining company of trying to extract iron ore stacks in violation of law.