IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS Dated: 11/05/2004 Coram The Honourable Mr. B. SUBHASHAN REDDY, Chief Justice and The Honourable Mr. Justice K. GNANAPRAKASAM W.A. No.3241 of 2003 and 3242 of 2003 and W.P. Nos.27705, 27706, 27758, 27768 to 27776, 27805, 27863, 27892 to 27898, 27936, 27983, 28079, 28203 to 28205, 28249, 28349, 28438, 28464, 28439, 28584, 28593, 28606, 28607, 28643, 28661, 28676, 28761, 28789, 28896, 28897, 28898, 28933, 28980, 29009, 29053, 29104, 29189, 29273, 29321, 29331 to 29334, 29519, 29573, 29719, 29738, 29840, 29863, 29964, 30190, 30225, 31080, 31234, 32058, 33274, 33326, 34148 and 35818 of 2003 and WAMP Nos.5181 and 5182 of 2003 and WPMP Nos.34922, 33862, 33863, 34072, 34073, 36827, 34145, 34029, 34771, 34912, 34913, 35127, 35286, 35287, 35288, 35319, 34750, 35001, 35509, 35821 to 35824, 34749, 34930, 34931, 34986, 35390, 35420, 35458, 35628, 35703, 35814, 35815, 36097, 36234, 36235, 36249, 36398, 36419, 36420, 34319, 38897, 36034, 36035, 37843, 37844, 34517, 40265, 35176, 36561, 40311, 36872, 34963, 34096 to 34102, 34451 to 34453, 36917, 38017, 41408, 33927, 33927, 43538 of 2003 W.A. Nos.3241 and 3242 of 2003 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by its Secretary to Government, Industries Department, Fort St. George, Chennai - 9. 2. The District Collector, Thanjavur District, ... Appellants in Thanjavur. both appeals. -Vs- 1. P. Krishnamoorthy 2. India Desia Kattida Thozhilalar Peravai (Indian National Construction Employees Federation, rep. by its President ... Respondents in Era. Kulasekaran) WA 3241/03 1. K. Chittiravel 2. Fernandes, Co-Ordinator, Campaign for the Protection of Water Resources - Tamil Nadu 3. Federation of Consumer Organisations, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, rep. by its General Secretary ... Respondents in M. Niyamudeen. WA 3242/03 Appeals against the order dated 8.10.2003 of the learned single Judge in W.P.M.P. Nos.33862 and 33863 of 2003 in W.P. Nos.27705 and 27706 of 2003. W.P. Nos.27705 and 27706 of 2003 P. Krishnamoorthy .Petitioner in WP 27705 K. Chittiravel .Petitioner in WP 27706 Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Thanjavur District, Thanjavur. . Respondents Petitions under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.27758 of 2003 R. Sahadevan ... Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Pudukottai District, Pudukottai. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus for the reasons stated therein. W.P.Nos. 27768 to 27774 of 2003 V.Sankara Subbu .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27768/03 D.Ravindran .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27769/03 S.Viswanathan .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27770/03 J.Thiagarajan .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27771/03 S.Karthikeyan .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27772/03 K.Mahendiran .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27773/03 M.Sankaranarayanan Rep. by Power Attorney S.Parthasarathi .. Petitioner in W.P.No.27774/03 Vs. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 .. First Respondent in all the petitions The District Collector, Thirunelveli District, Thirunelveli .. Second respondent in W.P.No.27768/03 The District Collector, Perambalur District, Perambalur. .. Second Respondent in W.P.No.27769/03 The District Collector, Thanjavur District, .. 2nd Respondent in Thanjavur. WP No.27770/03 The District Collector, Vellore District, .. 2nd Respondent in Vellore. WP No.27771/03 The District Collector, Perambalur District, .. 2nd Respondent in Perambalur. WP No.27772/03 The District Collector, Tirunelveli District, .. 2nd Respondent in Tirunelveli. WP No.27773/03 The District Collector, Thanjavur District, .. 2nd Respondent in Thanjavur. WP No.27774/03 Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.27775 and 27776 of 2003 K. Shanmugam . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichirapalli District, Trichirapalli . Respondents Petitions under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writs of Certiorarified Mandamus and Declaration respectively for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.27805 of 2003 M. Chithanathan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Sivaganga District, Sivagangai. 3. The Asst. Director of Geology & Mining, Sivagangai . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.27863 of 2003 Ruby Nesamani . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Kancheepuram District, Kancheepuram. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.27892 to 27898 of 2003 K. Shankar . Petitioner in WP 27892 R. Natesan . Petitioner in WP 27893 M. Ramanathan . Petitioner in WP 27894 S. Sundaravelu . Petitioner in WP 27895 K. Saravanan . Petitioner in WP 27896 M. Venkatesan . Petitioner in WP 27897 K. Subburayan . Petitioner in WP 27898 Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, . 1st Respondent in all MADRAS - 600 009 the petitions. 2. The District Collector, Thiruvannamalai District, . 2nd Respondent in WPs Thiruvannamalai. 27892, 27895 and 27898 The District Collector, Karur District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Karur 27894 The District Collector, Vellore District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Vellore. 27896 The District Collector, Kancheepuram District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Thiruvannamalai. 27897 The District Collector, Tuticorin District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Tuticorin. 27893 Petitions under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.27936 of 2003 P. Koothaperumal . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Sivaganga District, Sivagangai. 3. The Asst. Director of Geology & Mining, Sivagangai . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28203 to 28205 of 2003 B. Jayakumar . Petitioner in WP 28203 K. Balasubramanian . Petitioner in WP 28204 G. Dhanapal . Petitioner in WP 28205 Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, . 1st Respondent in all the MADRAS - 600 009 petitions. 2. The District Collector, Virudhunagar District, . 2nd Respondent in Virudhunagar. WP 28203 The District Collector, Thanjavur District, . 2nd Respondent in Thanjavur. WP 28204 The District Collector, Perambalur District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Perambalur. WP 28205 Petitions under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28079 of 2003 S. Pachaikani . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Karur District, Karur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28249 of 2003 S. Govindarajan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28349 of 2003 C. Jayaraman . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Dharmapuri District, Dharmapuri. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28464 of 2003 S. Subbu . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Ramanathapuram District, Ramanathapuram. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.28438 of 2003 S. Ganesan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.28439 of 2003 R. Murugesan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Karur District, Karur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.28584 of 2003 S. Mahadevan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Thanjavur District, Thanjavur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28606 of 2003 V. Balasubramanian . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28607 of 2003 P. Santhosham . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Perambalur District, Perambalur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28593 of 2003 Kallapalli Panchayat (Gr.I) Rep. by its President V. Thiruvengadam . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary to Government, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary to Government, Public Works Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 3. The Director, Rural Development Agency, Kuralagam, Chennai - 108. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Mandamus for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28643 of 2003 R. Periyasamy . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Karur District, Karur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28661 of 2003 M. Velusamy . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Namakkal District, Namakkal. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28676 of 2003 P. Shanmugam . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28761 of 2003 Vimal Kumar . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Vellore District, Vellore. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28789 of 2003 T.R. Mohan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Namakkal District, Namakkal. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28896 to 28898 of 2003 R. Sekar . Petitioner in WP 28896 P.K. Sridhar . Petitioner in WP 28897 Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Thanjavur District, . 2nd Respondent in Thanjavur. WPs 28896 & 28897 The District Collector Tiruchirappalli District . 2nd Respondent in Tiruchirappalli. WP 28898 Petitions under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28933 of 2003 M/s.Patel KNR (JV) Patel Estate, rep. by Project Manager P. Ramarao Mumbai . Petitioner Vs. 1. The District Collector, Vellore District, Vellore. 2. The District Collector, Dharmapuri District, Dharmapuri. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28980 of 2003 N. Babu ` . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29009 of 2003 Ayyadurai . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Tuticorin District, Tuticorin. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29053 of 2003 P. Santhosham . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Perambalur District, Perambalur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29104 of 2003 S. Navaneethan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Ramnad . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.28273 of 2003 P. Santhosham . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Tiruchirappalli District, Tiruchirappalli. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29189 of 2003 C. Vijayakumar . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Dharmapuri District, Dharmapuri. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29321 of 2003 R. Ashokan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Karur District, Karur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29331 to 29334 of 2003 M. Vijaya Mohan . Petitioner in WP 29331 P. Udayakumar . Petitioner in WP 29332 S. Prema . Petitioner in WP 29333 M. Vijaya Mohan . Petitioner in WP 29334 Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, . 1st Respondent in all the MADRAS - 600 009 petitions. 2. The District Collector, Thanjavur District, . 2nd Respondent in WPs Thanjavur. 29331 and 29334 The District Collector, Erode District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Erode 29332 The District Collector, Vellore District, . 2nd Respondent in WP Vellore 29333 Petitions under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29519 of 2003 K. Nallusamy . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29573 of 2003 A. Rajmohan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Karur District, Karur. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29719 of 2003 R. Prabhakaran . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Nagapattinam District, Nagapattinam . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29738 of 2003 G. Kamalakannan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29840 of 2003 S. Mohan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Erode. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29863 of 2003 V. Ravichandran . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.29964 of 2003 S. Renganathan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Namakkal District, Namakkal. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.30190 of 2003 K. Murugesan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Erode District, Erode. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.30225 of 2003 R. Murugan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Ramanathapuram District, Ramanathapuram. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.31080 of 2003 P. Radhakrishnan . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Coimbatore District, Coimbatore. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.31234 of 2003 A. George Roy . Petitioner Vs. 1. The Government of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary to Government, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The Director of Geology & Mining, Chennai - 32. 2. The District Collector, Tiruchirappalli . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.32058 of 2003 S. Kalpana . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Sivagangai District, Sivagangai. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. No.33274 of 2003 A. Shanmugam . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Trichy District, Trichy. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.33326 of 2003 R. Vasantha . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Sivagangai District, Sivagangai. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. W.P. Nos.34148 of 2003 K.C. Palanisamy . Petitioner Vs. 1. State of Tamil Nadu, rep. by the Secretary, Industries Department, Fort St. George, MADRAS - 600 009 2. The District Collector, Dharmapuri District, Dharmapuri. . Respondents Petition under Article 226 of Constitution for the issuance of Writ of Declaration for the reasons stated therein. !For Appellants and Respondents in : Mr. N.R. Chandran, Writ Petitions Advocate General, assisted by Mr. V. Raghupathi, G.P., Mr. P. Gunaraj, Spl. G.P. and Mr. S. Srinivasan, G.A. ^For Respondents in W.A. and : Mr. K. Ramakrishna Reddy Petitioners Mr. M.Ravindran, Sr. Counsel, For Mr. K.R. Krishnan Mr. R. Thiagarajan, Sr. Counsel For M/s. M. Muthappan Mr. K. Alagiriswamy, Sr. Counsel For Mr.PTS Narendranathan Mr. R. Viduthalai Mr. V. Sanjeevi Mr. K. Muthukumaraswamy Mr. AR. L. Sundaresan For Respondents/Impleaded Parties : Mr. P.V. Bakthavatchalam in the Writ Appeals. Mr. M.S. Umapathy Mr. T. Mohan :J U D G M E N T THE HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE These writ appeals and writ petitions arise out of Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and the Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959 framed thereunder. The matter relates to sand quarry leases. Sand quarry leases were being granted on the terms and conditions stipulated by the Government. The said terms and conditions are stipulated pursuant to the Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959, which have been framed in exercise of the rule-making power contained in Section 15 of the Mines and Mineral (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, which is hereinafter referred to as the Act and the above rules as Rules. The leases are granted with 3 years tenure, subject to the deposit of such amount towards royalty, dead rent, etc. The leases to quarry sand are granted both in respect of Government lands and patta lands. Lease for quarrying in Government lands is governed by Rule-8 of the Rules, while for that of the patta lands, Rules 17 and 18, thereof, govern it. While in Rule 17 quarrying is permitted free of charge by the owner on a small scale for his own use for a specific bona fide domestic or agricultural purpose, but if it is for business purposes Rule 18 is applicable, and then seigniorage fee or dead rent, etc., are payable. Procedure for leases under Rule 18 is prescribed in Rule 19 of the Rules. 2. There are 135 sand quarries in Government lands and 52 in patta lands. Leases, which have been granted earlier, expire in the years 2 003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Such numbers are 19, 102, 33 and 33 respectively. May be in some cases sand quarry is being done under the orders of the Court when the leases were either not granted or due to delay by the government in disposal of applications. Still there are number of applications pending seeking for lease, but that is a question apart as we are required to decide only the rights of the existing lessees or the persons quarrying under court orders. 3. This litigation arose because of the issuance of G.O. Ms. No. 95, Industries (MMC.I) Department, dated 01.10.2003 inserting Rule 38A to the Rules, making it enforceable from the next day i.e., 02.10.2003. The same reads as follows: "GOVERNMENT OF TAMIL NADU ABSTRACT Mines and Quarries - Minor Minerals - Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959 - Introduction of Rule - 38A - Amendment to Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959 - Notification - Issued. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ INDUSTRIES (MMC.I) DEPARTMENT G.O.Ms.No.95 Dated:01.10.2003 Read: G.O.2(D) No.46, Industries Department dated 25.09.2003 ------------ ORDER: Taking cognizance of the indiscriminate quarrying in the river systems of Tamil Nadu in a Public Interest Litigation, the Hon'ble High Court in their order dated 26.7.2002 had directed the State Government to constitute a Committee of Experts consisting of geologist, environmentalist and scientist to study the river and river beds in the State with reference to the