CM Bhajan Lal Sharma has given instructions to ensure the achievement of revenue targets by proper exploitation of mineral wealth. He said that effective prevention of illegal mining activities should be done by ensuring compliance of mining acts and rules.
CM Bhajan Lal Sharma was addressing a review meeting of the Mines Department at the Chief Minister’s residence on Sunday. He said that the state has abundant mineral resources and has immense potential for mining. He directed the Mines Department to expedite the exploration of new mining areas and give further impetus to the auction process. At the same time, Shri Sharma said that mining operations in the auctioned blocks should be started at the earliest to ensure timely fulfillment of the demand of the consumers.
Necessary reforms in the process
CM Bhajan Lal said that mining plays an important role in the revenue of the state. In such a situation, the mining department should ensure the achievement of the fixed revenue targets in a time-bound manner. Negligence in this regard will not be tolerated at any level. He directed to improve the penal procedure and make it consistent as required.
Effective prevention of illegal mining through innovative techniques
CM Bhajan Lal Sharma said that the department should put an effective check on illegal mining by incorporating new information technology techniques. He directed to curb illegal mining by ensuring strict checking of CCTV cameras, drone survey and goods carriage. The Chief Minister said that everyone will have to make collective efforts to curb illegal mining. For this, the police, district administration, forest department, transport department and mines department should work in coordination with each other.
Encourage M-Sand in a big way –
CM Bhajan Lal said that M-Sand is an excellent alternative to quality building material besides being environment friendly. It should be encouraged widely so that there is reduction in the exploitation of gravel. At the same time, Shri Sharma also directed to encourage the use of crusher dust.
Restructuring of the department
CM Bhajan Lal Sharma said that the departmental personnel should discharge their responsibilities with dedication and give top priority to the interest of the state. He also directed to restructure the Mines Department and transfer the personnel posted in the department for a long time in order to improve the quality of departmental works.
The Chief Minister gave necessary guidelines while conducting a detailed review of the cases related to DMFT and NMET, exploring the possibilities of auctioning new blocks. At the same time, he also directed to examine the best practices implemented in the mining sector in other states including Odisha and work on the possibility of implementing them in Rajasthan.
Senior officials of the concerned departments were present in the meeting.