Lok Sabha Question No. 890 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-12-12
Subject: Illegal Sand Mining
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: P. C. Mohan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.890

TO BE ANSWERED ON 12.12.2022

## Illegal Sand Mining

## 890. SHRI P.C. MOHAN:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Ministry is monitoring the illegal sand mining in the country and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the measures taken by the Government to ensure strict implementation of guidelines issued in this regard considering the fact that many officers have lost their lives while executing their duties to curb illegal mining in the past, across the country;
- (c) whether the Government is taking any steps to ensure that the general public is aware of the legal source of sand and riverbed material (RBM) suppliers; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

(a) to (d) Sand mining is regulated in terms of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 [MMDR Act] and the Mineral Concession Rules framed by the concerned State Governments / Union Territories (UT) Administrations under section 15 of this Act. Moreover, Section 23C of the MMDR Act, empowers the State Governments / U.T Administrations  to  make  rules  for  preventing  illegal  mining,  transportation  and  storage  of minerals and for the purposes connected therewith and to also enforce the various provisions related to sustainable sand mining guidelines.

The  Ministry  of  Environment  Forest  and  Climate  Change  (MoEF&CC)  has  issued  the Enforcement & Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining in January, 2020, supplemental to Sustainable Sand Management Guidelines, 2016, to regulate the Sand Mining in the Country from  its  identification  to  its  final  end-use  by  the  consumers  and  the  general  public  and  to control the instance of illegal mining through IT-enabled services and latest technologies for surveillance  of  the  Sand  mining  at  each  step.  This  document  serves  as  a  guideline  for collection  of  critical  information  for  enforcement  of  the  regulatory  provision(s)  and  it  also highlights  the  essential  infrastructural  requirements  necessary  for  effective  monitoring  for Sustainable Sand Mining and to control illegal mining.

Further,  MoEF  &  CC  has  taken  several  steps  to  ensure  adherence  to  the  environmental safeguards due to mining of minerals. These include, inter-alia, mandating the requirement of

prior environmental clearance under the provisions of Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification,  2006,  as  amended  from  time  to  time.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  Environment Clearances  (EC)granted  under  the  provisions  of  Environment  Impact  Assessment  (EIA) Notification, 2006, under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. Conduct of Public Hearing including Public Consultation are inbuilt in the procedure of grant of Environment Clearance.

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