Chandigarh, 6 Feb: Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh has ordered the setting up of multi-department teams to check illegal mining. Deputy commissioners will head these teams.
“Officials from taxation, mining, revenue and police departments will be part of these teams, which will be authorised to set up nakas to check illegal mining and the consequent evasion of tax,” a state government spokesperson said.
The announcement comes a day after local bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, in Jalandhar, hinted at rampant illegal mining in the state. As a solution, he had suggested that sand transported across the state be weighed at random points and if the bill with the trucker was for a lower amount, the vehicle must be impounded.
“Had the department been with me, I would have taught them (illegal miners) a lesson,” Sidhu had said. State Congress president and Gurdaspur MP Sunil Jakhar had also recently suggested that the government was working on a policy for stone crushers.
In the past, the Amarinder government endured major embarrassment, after the then cabinet minister Rana Gurjit Singh was awarded mining contracts in name of his former cook and employees. Eventually, the minister resigned.
In a meeting of the sub-committee on finance, Amarinder said, “Illegal mining and tax evasion has led to heavy losses for the exchequer. Offenders will not be spared and no political interference will be tolerated.” He also directed that increased vigil be maintained on the working of stone crushers in Rupnagar, SAS Nagar and Pathankot, the spokesperson added.
At the meeting, representatives of the mining department spoke on the revenue generated this fiscal.
News Source: www.hindustantimes.com
