Sand worth Rs 1.19 cr sold from govt quarry at Bassi Ghulam Hussain

Hoshiarpur, December 22

A team of officials of the District Mining Department visited the quarry run by the Punjab Government at Bassi Ghulam Hussain village on Friday morning and interacted with people who had come there to purchase sand.

Officials claimed that the people had confirmed that they faced no problem in purchasing sand. Damandeep Singh Gill, Executive Engineer, Mining Department, said sand was being sold from the government quarries to the common people at the rate of Rs 5.50 per square foot from January 2023.

So far, the Mining Department had sold sand worth Rs 1.19 crore from the government quarry at Bassi Ghulam Hussain village to residents of Hoshiarpur and deposited the money in the government treasury.

Gill said since January, a fine of Rs 1.30 crore was recovered from suspects whose vehicles were impounded carrying illegally mined materials that included sand and gravel.

“At present, three mining sites are functional in the district. We appeal to the people that if there is large amount of sand on someone’s land, then the person concerned can visit our office and inform about it. His land can be earmarked for excavating sand,” said Gill.

He said the work of the mining mafia had almost stopped as sand was easily available from the government quarries in the district. “We warn the mining mafia that if someone steals sand or is caught selling sand illegally, strict action will be taken against him,” he added.