A total of 10,734 First Information Reports (FIRs) relating to illegal mining were registered across the State during 2017-18, the highest figure in the country. During this period a total of 35,166 vehicles were seized.
According to the information provided by Minister of State for Mines and Coal Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary in the Rajya Sabha, almost half of the total number of FIRs (21,559) registered in the States across the country during 2017-18 (till September 2017) were from Tamil Nadu.
Rajasthan and Jharkhand registered 2,536 and 2,444 FIRs respectively.
As per section 23-C of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, the State governments were empowered to frame rules for prevention of illegal mining, storage and transportation for both major and minor minerals.
The information is based on the details provided by the respective State governments to the Indian Bureau of Mines.
The Minister was responding to queries made by MP Narayan Lal Panchariya.
Funds unutilised
According to the Minister’s reply to a query raised by MP M.V. Rajeev Gowda, Tamil Nadu is the only State among 12 major mineral rich States that has collected funds under the District Mineral Foundation for the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana but has not been utilised. Though ₹202 crore was collected since the notification of the Foundation in May last year, it has not been spent yet.
As per the norms, at least 60% of PMKKKY funds were to be utilised for drinking water supply, environment preservation and pollution control measures among others, up to 40% of the funds were to be used for physical infrastructure, irrigation and energy.
