To curb illegal mining, e-transit pass system begins across state today

Shiv Kumar Sharma

Tribune News Service

Yamunanagar, December 31

The government will start e-transit pass (e-rawaana) system in the state from tomorrow for monitoring the movement of raw material from mining sites and products from stone crushers and screening plants.

This system may help the authorities of Mining Department, Regional Transport Authority and other departments in controlling illegal mining as well as overloading.

“Instead of issuing manual bills, mining lease holders, screening plant and stone crusher owners will issue electronically generated e-transit passes to their buyers for transporting the material or processed mineral,” sources said.

Amitabh Singh Dhillon, Secretary and Director General, Mines and Geology, is the brain behind the e-rawaana system.

As per an order issued by Dhillon on September 12, mining lease holders, screening plant owners and stone crusher licensees of the state had got themselves registered on the Mines and Geology Department portal by September 30.

Only the persons and firms registered on the portal will have permission to generate and issue electronically generated e-transit passes to their buyers.

Similarly, all vehicle owners intending to transport any mineral within Haryana had also got their vehicles registered on the department portal at the link ‘e-rawaana’ from October 1 to October 20, 2019.

“The vehicle owners who failed to register their vehicles and are found transporting minerals without e-rawaana will be treated as illegal,” read the order.

Sources said that till December 31, 2019, mining leaseholders were issuing a one-time royalty slip for vehicles transporting mining material and products. But the transporters were allegedly misusing the slip by using it multiple times.

After implementation of ‘e-rawaana’ system, vehicles will be allowed to transport mineral/products only one time on one pass as loading and unloading details can easily be verified.

“After the implementation of e-rawaana, if the Mining Department carries out stock verification on screening plants and stone crushers regularly, then after the comparison of stock, the quantity can be assessed correctly. This practice can stop the business of illegal mining,” said a source.

Sources said e-rawaana would control overloading as the quantity of minerals would be mentioned.

Ashok Kumar, district mining officer, Yamunanagar, said that they had made preparations and would start the e-rawaana system in the district on Wednesday.