As many as nine companies allegedly involved in illegal mining of granite stone in Madurai district have been banned from exporting them.
Officials sources said the ban was imposed by the Customs Department following a letter from Madurai Rural Police stating that cases were registered against these companies for illegal granite mining.
Customs officials said if the granite companies had any outstanding committed orders, they should obtain ‘No Objection’ certificates from the Revenue Department.
Cases have been filed against several granite companies in Madurai district, including one in which Union Minister M K Alagiri’s son is a partner, following a recent official report which pegged loss to the state exchequer at over Rs 16,000 crore due to illegal quarrying.
Meanwhile, Vigilance and Anti-corruption wing of the police said they seized documents of immovable assets of PRP Granites in Dindigul and Theni districts following searches.
DVAC teams were formed to assess the assets of the company, which recorded fast growth in a short period, to inspect the properties in Uthamapalayam and Royappan Patti where the company directors had relatives.
