Tamil Nadu government announces real-time mineral monitoring to curb illegal mining

The Story in Brief

Tamil Nadu’s state government has announced plans to create an end-to-end mineral management system to monitor mineral production and transportation in real time. Finance minister N Marie Wilson presented the budget and said the technology-driven, transparent and integrated framework aims to curb illegal mining and quarrying and plug revenue leakages. The natural resources department will set up district-level vigilance and enforcement wings to strengthen surveillance.

Officials say that over the past three months they seized 1,307 vehicles allegedly involved in illegal mineral transport and registered 1,161 FIRs. A special drive inspected 431 quarries and found violations in 155 cases, with action under way. A special task force will inspect crushing units and stockyards, and check posts have been set up along state borders. The government plans granite polishing and design centres in Pudukkottai and Perambalur, will prepare a detailed project report this year, has allocated Rs 438 crore in revised estimates for the sector, and hopes to generate an additional Rs 15,000 crore by using IT measures such as faceless GST assessments, faceless property registration and end-to-end computerisation of mining monitoring.

The Indian Opinion

The government’s language describing a “technology-driven, transparent and integrated” system and its aim to “prevent” illegal mining is optimistic and forward-looking. An ordinary reader should note these are aspirations rather than established outcomes: recent seizures and inspections indicate active enforcement but do not prove a sustained decline in illicit activity. The projected Rs 15,000 crore from IT measures and the Rs 438 crore allocation for the granite sector are targets whose realisation will depend on implementation, inter-departmental coordination, ongoing maintenance of monitoring systems and independent auditing of results. Where details are thin, caution and clear performance metrics will be important for public assessment.

Original article: Real-time mineral monitoring system to curb illegal mining, says Tamil Nadu government (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)

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