Sand worth ₹179 cr missing from mining dept in Rohtas
When 4.83 crore cu ft sand was found stored at 17 points during physical verification by local officers, how its measurement increased to 5.76 crore cu ft in the verification later done by the PMU?
PANKAJ KUMAR SINGH, AMPL manager
SASARAM: At least 5.27 crore cubic feet (cu ft) of sand worth ₹179 crore disappeared from the mining department stocks in a span of three months, from May to July this year, assistant director, mining department, Gopal Kumar said.
The theft was detected during the physical verification done by the mining department’s project management unit (PMU). A total of 5.76 crore cu ft sand was stored at 17 different locations, out of which only 49.27 lakh was found available during verification, Kumar said.
The mining department alleged that the theft of sand was committed by the licensee Aditya Multicom Pvt Ltd (AMPL) and registered FIR against the company in the first week of August.
Cases under concerned sections of the Indian Penal Code and Bihar mining minerals rules, 2019, were registered against the AMPL, Kumar said.
Meanwhile, the AMPL denied the allegations saying that the department had cancelled its K-licence (permit for stocking
the sand for sale in the off-season) and seized the stored sand in July this year. Hence, the officials in the custody of the seized sand were responsible for the theft. The AMPL also approached the Patna High Court and filed a CWJC in this regard.
The AMPL had surrendered its mining licence in the last week of April this year, alleging huge losses due to illegal sand mining and its transportation and the same was not stopped despite several request letters sent to district and state officials.
Later, following the pressure of officials, the company then obtained K-Licences from the department to store sand at 17 different locations in the Rohtas
district to sell in the off-season. The license was valid up to December 31, 2021.
On May 1, the K-License of the company was suspended by the department till the verification of the stock. On May 4, the subdivisional magistrates of Dehri and Bikramganj, besides Kumar, verified the stocks and found 4.83 crore cu ft sand stored at 17 locations.
In July’s first week, the mining department cancelled the K-License of the company stating violation of rules at storage points.
Later in July, the department’s Project management unit (PMU) again conducted physical verification, in which it was found that out of a total of 5.76 crore cu ft sand (figure as stated by the PMU) stored at 17 points, only 49.27 lakh was available there.
AMPL manager Pankaj Kumar Singh said that the entire process raised some serious questions. When 4.83 crore cu ft sand was found stored at 17 points during physical verification by local officers, how its measurement increased to 5.76 crore cu ft in the verification later done by the PMU?, he asked.
Mining department was the custodian of the stored sand after AMPL’s licence was cancelled. “The company paid the royalty of mining settlement and K-License in advance but was deprived of selling the sand.
AMPL has knocked on the door of Patna HC and will surely get justice,” Singh said.
Meanwhile, CPI-ML Kaimur district secretary and environment activist Vijay Yadav said that the mining and other officials concerned who ignored such huge theft that could not have been committed in a day or a week were also responsible. Yadav requested Patna HC to take cognizance of the matter to expose the racket behind illegal sand mining.
In July this year, Aurangabad SP, Dy SPs of Aurangabad and Dehri and SDM of Dehri were among the 17 top officials suspended by the state government for their alleged involvement in illegal sand mining.