Tamil Nadu: 1.4 cr tonnes of unlawful seashore sand to be handed over to PSU
In accordance with the Satyabrata Sahoo Committee, over 1.5 crore tonnes of minerals — together with garnet, ilmenite, rutile, zircon, sillimanite, and leucoxene — had been discovered within the possession of personal corporations.
Nevertheless, a 2023 reassessment revealed that only one.4 crore tonnes remained, indicating that a good portion might have been illicitly eliminated.
In 2017-18, as a part of court-ordered investigations, 49 godowns within the three districts had been sealed by the authorities to forestall additional tampering or transportation of the minerals.
To supervise the switch to IREL, the state authorities has fashioned a high-level committee comprising the Commissioner of Geology and Mining, CEO of the Tamil Nadu Infrastructure Growth Board, and the particular secretary of the finance division.
This committee will decide the honest worth of the seized minerals.
Moreover, the district collectors of Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, and Kanniyakumari have been tasked with forming multidisciplinary monitoring groups.
These groups will embody officers from the Income, Survey, Geology and Mining Departments, the Atomic Minerals Directorate, and IREL.
The groups will supervise the safe transportation of the inventory and guarantee round the clock police safety at storage websites.
The federal government has additionally directed these district administrations to provoke proceedings to get better the assessed mineral worth and royalty — amounting to Rs 5,832 crore — from the lessees answerable for unlawful mining, transport, and export between 2000 and 2017.
In parallel, the Madras Excessive Courtroom has ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to represent Particular Investigation Groups comprising officers of confirmed integrity and technical experience.
The groups are anticipated to probe the modus operandi of the unlawful mining operations, the involvement of presidency officers, and the monetary loss to the state.
The courtroom additionally instructed the Union authorities to assessment the monetary and industrial transactions of the implicated corporations and, if needed, contain businesses such because the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Revenue Tax Division, Customs and Excise, and the Business Taxes Division.
Notably, on 6 April, the CBI carried out raids at properties related to V.V. Minerals and its promoter S. Vaikundarajan in Keeraikkaaranthattu close to Thisaiyanvilai, as a part of the continuing investigation into the Rs 5,832 crore seashore sand mining rip-off.
