'Smart' surveillance system to check illegal mining across UT
24 violations detected during pilot phase
The Mining Department of the Jammu and Kashmir Government is developing a surveillance system based on geo-informatics to detect illegal mining anywhere in the Union Territory.
The government stated that the department is developing an Integrated Mining Surveillance System (IMSS) portal and mobile application through the Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geo Informatics (BISAG). The system features a dashboard integrated with the departmental e-challan, e-market portal, GPS, RFID and public grievance portal.
“The system is designed to detect suspicious activities (illegal mining) and is being tested on a pilot basis for rollout. As of date, 144 triggers have been generated for field verification; all have been verified, 24 illegal activities confirmed and a penalty of Rs 110.47 lakh imposed,” the government stated.
The government was replying to a query by MLA Reyaz Ahmad Khan on Saturday.
It further said that, in order to bring transparency and ease of doing business, the department has launched an online web portal for the sale and purchase of minerals at notified rates for the convenience of the general public. The existing manual challan has been replaced with an e-challan featuring a secured QR code, watermark, validity period, unique challan number and details of the vendor/lessee. Through this, project holders, mineral dealers, crusher units and short permit/quarry/mining lease holders can apply online for transportation of minor minerals in J&K.
“On-the-spot e-challaning has been introduced through PoS machines, with one PoS machine already provided to each district on the analogy of the Traffic Department. Additionally, a proposal to extend powers of e-challaning and seizure to Deputy Commissioners, SSPs and other senior civil and police officers is under consideration with the departments concerned,” the government stated.
The department has also constituted vigilance-cum-monitoring flying squads/enforcement teams for the Jammu and Kashmir divisions to strengthen surveillance on illegal extraction and transportation of minor minerals in the UT.
Further, the government has constituted a multi-department district-level task force under the chairmanship of the concerned Deputy Commissioner. The mandate of the committee includes quantifying material extracted through illegal mining and imposing penalties, inspecting mining belts with respect to land titles, safeguarding ecology and environment and identifying sites for e-auction, among other functions.
