Raj auctions 12 new sand mining plots despite HC order on replenishment studies

Jaipur: Rajasthan's mining department has started the process to auction 12 new sand mining plots in Jodhpur, Kota, Pali and Nagaur, despite the Rajasthan high court recently quashing the state's 2024 auction of 93 gravel mining leases in four districts. The division bench of the high court also directed the state govt to submit a report explaining how natural replenishment of gravel would occur after extraction. The court flagged the absence of a scientific assessment of natural recharge of mined material.Experts and industry representatives alleged the new sand mining auctions violate norms and Supreme Court-approved guidelines. Pradeep Singh, an expert on the issue, said, "As per the applicable mining rules, once a mining lease period concludes, no mining activity can be permitted in the same area for the next five years to allow for natural replenishment. A comprehensive scientific study on the process of replenishment of sand at the affected sites is mandatory. However, no such exercise has been undertaken."
A senior official, requesting anonymity, said, "The high court quashed the auctions pertaining to only four districts, as the petition was filed in respect of those areas. However, as per the Central Empowered Committee guidelines, the directions are applicable across the state."Naveen Sharma, president of All-Rajasthan Bajri Truck Operators' Welfare Society, who is contesting issues related to alleged illegal sand mining before the Supreme Court, said, "So far, 256 sand mining Letters of Intent (LOIs) have been issued. The Central Empowered Committee guidelines have not been adhered to in these cases either, despite the high court's observations. At the time the petition was filed, only 93 LOIs had been issued, but the number has since increased substantially."Sources alleged the state govt has not complied with recommendations of the Central Empowered Committee approved by the Supreme Court in 2021, which mandate a five-year ban on mining after a lease expires to ensure riverbeds naturally recharge. "The state govt re-auctioned the same mining areas by fragmenting them into smaller blocks ranging from 12 to 100 hectares," a source claimed.