State-owned corp should sell sand: Cabinet sub-panel

CHANDIGARH:A cabinet sub-committee on mining led by local bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu has proposed, in its report, that a state-owned corporation must sell sand.

“The retail price of sand will also be fixed,” Sidhu said on Thursday.

The committee would submit the report to Punjab chief minister (CM) Captain Amarinder Singh and its proposals would be discussed at the forthcoming meeting of the council of ministers.

Other than Sidhu, finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, rural development and panchayat and housing minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and the newly-inducted minister for mining and geology, Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, were present at the meeting, where this was decided on Thursday.

“The final decision in fixing sand prices would have to be taken by the CM,” said Sidhu.

Last week, Sidhu had led a team to visit Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to study the issue.

“There is lot to learn from the two states, we have 11,500-km span of four river beds – three perennial and one seasonal, Ghaggar; Telangana has only one. In spite of this, the state’s income from mining is manifold, when compared to Punjab’s income from mining,” Sidhu said.

Since the auction of sand quarries last year, the issue became controversial as the government had said it will not allow illegal mining.

“It’s not sand mafia, it’s actually the transport mafia. If we can control it, the matter will be resolved,” the minister said.

› The retail price of sand will also be fixed. A final decision in this regard will be taken by Capt Amarinder Singh. NAVJOT SINGH SIDHU, local bodies minister