Govt to study Uttarakhand model of collecting mining royalty, forms panel

Our Correspondent

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NURPUR, AUGUST 3
Industries Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan, after convening a review meeting of officials of various government departments here at the Mini Secretariat premises today, constituted a special committee to study the model of Uttarakhand for the collection of mining royalty. The Uttarakhand government has entrusted the responsibility of mining royalty collection in a scientific way through a private agency by calling open bids which ensured the elimination of anomalies in mining leases and royalty collection from the lessees.
The constituted committee would comprise SP Nurpur, SDMs Nurpur, Fatehpur, Indora and Jawali subdivisions and local senior officials of the Mining Department and HP State Electricity Board Ltd. The minister directed the committee to study the feasibility of the model of Uttarakhand and submit a report to him for further action.
At the review meeting, Chauhan instructed the officials of the Mining Department to collect details of the number of JCB machines and their operators in Nurpur, Jawali, Indora and Fatehpur subdivisions and asked them to conduct thorough investigations in fake cases of X-forms mandatorily required for transporting finished minerals from the stone crushers.
The minister, while expressing concern regarding the electricity theft in the stone crusher industry in this interstate region, directed the electricity board’s local officials to instal smart energy meters on the premises of the stone crusher units so that theft could be stopped.
He also directed the officials to take action under the environmental compensation orders of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in which there was a provision to confiscate the vehicles involved in illegal mining and even to auction these.
He said Kangra was the largest district of the state but in comparison the royalty collection here was very less. He directed all the officials to take appropriate steps to increase the revenue of the state government by stopping illegal mining.

Officials told to submit report

• The Uttarakhand government has entrusted the responsibility of mining royalty collection in a scientific way through a private agency by calling open bids which ensured elimination of anomalies in mining leases and royalty collection from the lessees.
• The constituted committee would comprise SP Nurpur, SDMs Nurpur, Fatehpur, Indora and Jawali subdivisions and local senior officials of the Mining Department and HP State Electricity Board Ltd
• The minister directed the committee to study the feasibility of the model of Uttarakhand and submit a report to him for further action.