Una, 02 August: Taking a decisive step to address the ever-growing problem of illegal mining in Una district, Industry Minister Harshwardhan Chouhan has directed the formation of a committee to explore the feasibility of handing over the responsibility of royalty collection for legal mining to a private agency through open bidding. This new model aims to remove anomalies in mining leases and improve government royalty collection.
The committee, comprising Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent of Police, all SDMs and officials of the mining department, has been tasked to conduct a thorough study of the states where such systems are already in place. Their findings and recommendations are to be submitted to the Industry Minister within a month.
Minister Chouhan announced this initiative during a meeting of district officers at the DRDA auditorium on Friday. The main objective of the meeting was to strategize on effective measures to curb illegal mining activities in Una district. Emphasizing on zero tolerance policy, Minister Chouhan said that the state government will take strict action against those involved in illegal mining.
Minister Chouhan said, “We will not tolerate illegal mining under any circumstances. Strict action will be taken against those involved in it. All officials have to ensure compliance with these instructions. Quick measures and long-term plans to stop illegal mining were also discussed in the meeting.”
The minister reiterated the government’s commitment to crackdown on illegal mining and highlighted that surveillance has been beefed up in all districts with special focus on border areas. He also revealed plans to consult the Director General of Police to allocate a dedicated police reserve force to check and prevent illegal mining activities in Una.
Apart from forming the committee, minister Chouhan directed mining department officials to collect detailed information about the number of JCB machines and their operators classified as per assembly constituency. This data collection is part of a broader effort to regulate and monitor the use of mining equipment more effectively. The minister also stressed the importance of thorough investigation into cases involving fake M-Forms, which are required for legal transportation of mining material.
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