Minerals Department Imposes 10x Royalty and Fines Rs 38 Crore for Illegal Mining in Beawar District

Jaipur : Chief Minister Shri Bhajanlal Sharma and the Chief Secretary had previously directed all District Collectors to strictly prevent and take action against illegal mining, unauthorized transportation, and encroachment.

In response, Beawar District Collector Dr. Mahendra Khadgawat ordered a major crackdown on illegal mining, carried out on Tuesday under the joint coordination of the Administration, Police, and Minerals Department, led by the Raipur sub-district officer.

The Minerals Department took action after uncovering illegal mining outside the designated lease area by Karni Kripa Granite Firm in Amargarh village, Chang Tehsil, Raipur Region. An investigation revealed that 130,110.96 tonnes of material had been mined illegally, warranting a penalty of 10 times the standard royalty, totaling Rs 37.73 crore. Illegal mining activities were identified over an area of 5,571 square meters, with illegal encroachment found on an additional 22,274 square meters.

The District Collector had previously received complaints from villagers about illegal mining and encroachment by the firm. In response, he directed the Raipur Sub-Divisional Officer and a joint team to investigate the complaint on-site.

The team, comprising the Raipur sub-division officer, Tehsildar, Patwari Halka Chang, and officials from the Minerals and Police Departments, visited the site at Khasra No. 84 in Amargarh village. The lease holder was not present at the time of inspection.

It was found that the mining lease (ML 39/02) was not recorded in the revenue records, though the Minerals Department had approved a lease area of 4 hectares at Khasra No. 84. Only two boundary markers of the lease area were present, while the remaining two were missing. The Revenue and Minerals Departments jointly marked the 4-hectare lease area on-site.

The investigation confirmed that illegal mining had occurred beyond the lease boundary, encroaching on non-leased land. Following these findings, the administration imposed a fine of approximately Rs 38 crore on the lease holder.