Govt fixes sand prices, caps profit of contractors at Rs 10 per tonne

Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 30

Aiming to check the sand and gravel demand-supply gap and thus bring down the prices, the Punjab government today started auctioning sand quarries in the state’s riverbeds and also fixed the profit that a contractor can make.

Twenty-four quarries were auctioned through reverse-bidding and by fixing the profit of contractors at Rs10 per tonne of sand and gravel here this morning.

Though the state Industry Department had initially decided to auction 28 quarrying sites in Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Ludhiana, auction for four sites was called off this morning. These sites—Nasrala, Mukhliyana and Dihana in Hoshiarpur and Kum Kalan in Ludhiana—could not be auctioned, the first three because there were no takers and Kum Kalan because it has to be allotted to Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation.

Over 70 bids were received by the government for the auction of the mining sites, with maximum bids being for the three sites in Jalandhar.

Sixteen sites were auctioned in Hoshiarpur and five in Ludhiana. In all, Punjab proposes to auction 79 sites. The auction of 27 sites in Mohali and Ropar will take place tomorrow and of 28 sites in Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Moga and Patiala on December 2.

For the auction of all mining sites, to extract minor minerals like sand and aggregate (sand and gravel), the government has fixed all rates for royalty; environment management fund; compensation to be paid to farmers whose land is being mined; labour charges (handling charges for mined minerals); expenses incurred in getting environment clearance and installation of weighbridges at the quarry site; and a Rs10 per tonne of profit (of mined sand and gravel).

By taking into account all these factors, the state government has fixed the selling price of the minor minerals at anything between Rs118 to Rs132 per tonne. Those who bid for the mines can bid at the reserved price or a price less than that.

In today’s auction of 24 sites, for 19 sites most of the bids received were for the fixed reserve price. Since several bids have been received at these fixed selling price rates, the mining wing of the Industry Department will now hold a draw of lots of the successful bidders for each site and the successful bidder will be chosen on December 3 and December 4.

B Purusartha, Director (Mines), told The Tribune that the department was all geared up to sell the sand and aggregate at lower prices. “Since the prices are fixed, we will be creating awareness amongst public of the price fixed for each mining site; these prices will also be displayed at the pit heads. A public grievance redressal system is also being created wherein if the contractor is overcharging, the General Manager of Industry department, the deputy commissioner or the district police chief can be contacted. A system of surprise checks to check any overcharging has also been put in place,” he said.