Lok Sabha Question No. 229 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-07-21
Subject: Illegal Mining in Aravali Area in Rajasthan
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Shri Murari Lal Meena

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 229

TO BE ANSWERED ON 21.07.2025

## Illegal Mining in Aravali area of Rajasthan

## 229. SHRI MURARI LAL MEENA:

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

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  aware  that  illegal  mining  in  Aravalli  area  of  Rajasthan  is causing huge loss to ecological system, effecting vegetation, wildlife  and ground water level and if so, the details thereof ;
- (b) whether  the  Government  has  taken  any  special  steps  to  rejuvenate  and  maintain environmental  balance  of  Aravalli  area  to  control  illegal  mining  and  if  so,  the  details thereof;
- (c) the  details  of  cases  of  illegal  mining  reported  during  the  last  five  years,  district-wise, including Dausa Lok Sabha Constituency of Rajasthan;
- (d) whether  the  Government  is  considering  to  implement  any  new  scheme  or  policy  for ecological conservation, stringent measures against illegal mining and awareness amongst local community in Aravalli area; and
- (e) if so, the complete details thereof and likely time line for the same?

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)

(a) to (e): Mining processes and operations in all the areas including Aravalli area of Rajasthan are regulated under EIA notification, 2006 as amended.

The Government has mandated prior Environmental Clearance (EC) under the Environment Impact  Assessment  (EIA)  Notification,  2006  as  amended  to  regulate  mining  activities  and ensure environmental safeguards. For projects falling under Category 'B', the State Environment  Impact  Assessment  Authority  (SEIAA)  appraises  proposals  based  on  the recommendations of the State Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC). The standard procedure includes four stages: screening, scoping, public consultation, and appraisal.

Illegal mining is defined in Mineral Concession Rules, 2016 notified under Mines and Mineral (  Development  and Regulation  Act), MMDR  Act, 1957 by Ministry  of Mines. In terms of section 15 and Section 23C of the MMDR Act, the power to regulate, monitor, and prevent illegal mining of minor minerals, including sand, rests with the respective State Governments.

As per the information provided by the Directorate of Mines and Geology, Government of Rajasthan, a number of stringent measures have been undertaken to curb illegal mining and to maintain ecological balance in the Aravalli area. The State Government has implemented a multifaceted strategy to prevent illegal mining, transportation, and storage of minerals. Key measures include deploying Border Home Guards at mineral offices, mandating GPS and RFID tags for mineral transport vehicles, amending the Rajasthan Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 2017  to  strengthen  regulatory  oversight.  District-level  monitoring  committees  have  been established  to  promote  sustainable  mining  and  environmental  protection.  To  address  the demand of sand/bajri,  State  Govt.  has  formulated  the  M-Sand  Policy  2024.  Automation of weighing stations is under process.

Auctioning of mineral plots both major and minor is being continuously undertaken by the State Govt. Data analysis team has been established in the Directorate to prevent misuse of online systems. Six State-level vigilance teams have been formed at the Directorate level to investigate  illegal  mining  complaints.  To  prevent  unauthorized  access  to  mining  sites,  the Government has introduced geofencing for both legal mining lease areas and known illegal mining sites. This technology creates virtual boundaries, allowing authorities to monitor and control vehicle entry.

The details provided by State Directorate of Mines and Geology, Rajasthan with respect to steps taken to prevent illegal mining/transportation/storage and action taken in Aravalli districts including that of district Dausa is given at Annexure I.

The  Aravalli  Landscape  Restoration  i.e.  Aravalli  Green  Wall  Project,  aims  to  follow  an integrated landscape approach in eco-restoration, focusing on improving the overall ecology of the landscape. The initial priority has been given to the eco-restoration of degraded forest area. Based on the extent of ongoing programs/schemes of the Central and State Governments, the initiative is  being  taken up in the convergence mode with budgetary support from ongoing schemes/programs i.e. Green India Mission, Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA), Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), State Plan, Externally Aided Project etc. The State Forest Department is the  nodal  agency  for  ensuring  convergence  and  smooth  implementation  of  eco-restoration activities. The restoration of the buffer area would be taken through an integrated landscape approach. The community would be at the centre of these initiatives envisaged to be carried out till 2034, playing a critical role in every stage of the restoration interventions.

Details provided by State Directorate of Mines and Geology, Rajasthan with respect to steps taken to prevent illegal mining/transportation/storage and action taken in Aravalli districts.

## I. Provisions made for prevention of illegal mining/transportation/storage:-

1.  Regarding  penalty  in  relation  to  illegal  mining,  provisions  have  been  made under Section 21 of MMDR Act, 1957, in which:-
- (1) Sub-section (1) provides for imprisonment up to five years and penalty up to Rs. 5 lakh per hectare for violation of sub-section (1) and (1A) of Section 4.
- (2) Sub-section (2) provides for imprisonment up to two years or penalty up to Rs. 5 lakh or both for violation of rules made under the provisions of MMDR Act, 1957.
- (3) Sub-section (4) provides for seizure of vehicle and mineral used in illegal mining/export and sub-section (5) provides for recovery of the price of mineral.
2.  Rule 54 (3) of Rajasthan Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 2017 also provides for imprisonment up to five years and penalty up to Rs 5 lakh per hectare.
3.  If illegal mining is found in khatedari lands, provisions have been made to take action against the khatedar as per rules and cancel the khatedari.
4.  There are provisions for action against illegal mining in forest lands to be taken by the Forest Department.
5.  Provisions have been made to cancel allotment and take action if illegal mining is found on allotted land by autonomous institutions / industrial institutions etc.

## II.  Steps  taken  to  stop  illegal  mining/transportation/storage  in  the  Rajasthan State

1. Border Home Guards have been employed in all mineral offices to curb illegal mining in the state. Apart from this, RAC (Rajasthan Armed Constabulary) is also used as per requirement.
2. By installing GPS and RFID tags in every mineral vehicle, standard operating procedures were made for effective control over the export of mineral vehicles and all offices were informed. Rajasthan Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 2017 have also been amended by the Government by issuing a notification dated 03.01.2025.
3. Keeping in view the mineral development in the state, a district level "Mineral Development, Environmental Protection and Illegal Mining" monitoring committee  has been  constituted by the Government  vide  order  dated 23.01.2025 to resolve the practical problems of legal mining and to promote environmentally friendly mining and to prevent illegal mining.
4. M-Sand Policy 2024 has been announced by the State Government to reduce the gap between demand and supply of mineral gravel, so that illegal mining of mineral gravel can be curbed.
5. Auction  proceedings  are  being  carried  out  continuously  by  creating  plots  of mineral gravel and other major / minor minerals.
6. By forming a "Data Analysis Team" at the Directorate level, regular investigation is done to prevent misuse in the departmental online system. So that the misuse of Ravana can be curbed.
7. 06 state level teams of vigilance officers / employees have been formed at the Directorate  level.  They  are  sent  for  investigation  on  receipt  of  complaints of illegal mining at any time and place, and action is being taken as per rules.
8. Provision  has  been  made  for  geofencing  of  mining  lease  areas  and  illegal mining sites so that effective control can be done on the entry of vehicles into the area.
9. The process of automating the weighing machines is under process.

## III. Action against Illegal Mining/Transportation/Stock in Aravali Districts in last five years (From Year 2020-21 to 2025-26 up to 15-07-2025)

All figures are as per Department of Mines and Geology Online Management System (DMGOMS):

| Sr. No.   | District         | Action Detail                  |   2020- 21 |   2021- 22 |   2022- 23 |   2023- 24 |   2024- 25 |   2025- 26 (Upto 15-07- 25) |     TOTAL |
|-----------|------------------|--------------------------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|-----------------------------|-----------|
| 1         | Kotputli- Bahrod | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     117    |      51    |     146    |     243    |     157    |                       88    |  802      |
|           |                  | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      12    |       3    |       6    |      24    |      10    |                        1    |   56      |
|           |                  | F I R Lodged                   |       6    |       0    |      26    |       7    |      15    |                       14    |   68      |
|           |                  | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     115    |      51    |     144    |     214    |     158    |                       44    |  726      |
|           |                  | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.5  |       0.24 |       0.78 |       1.84 |       0.95 |                        0.1  |    4.4166 |
| 2         | Sikar            | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     207    |      96    |     208    |     231    |      90    |                       23    |  855      |
|           |                  | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       5    |       2    |       4    |      16    |       3    |                        0    |   30      |
|           |                  | F I R Lodged                   |       0    |       3    |      27    |      14    |       0    |                        0    |   44      |
|           |                  | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     188    |      95    |     208    |     206    |      88    |                       24    |  809      |
|           |                  | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       2.01 |       0.93 |       1.61 |       2.54 |       0.44 |                        0.17 |    7.6962 |
| 3         | Alwar            | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     258    |     218    |     406    |     304    |     235    |                       59    | 1480      |
|           |                  | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      26    |      10    |      26    |      35    |      20    |                        6    |  123      |
|           |                  | F I R Lodged                   |      37    |      37    |     166    |      58    |      29    |                       10    |  337      |
|           |                  | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     238    |     245    |     402    |     279    |     238    |                       62    | 1464      |
|           |                  | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       3.13 |       1.93 |       2.82 |       2.34 |       0.71 |                        0.22 |   11.152  |
| 4         | Jhunjhunu        | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     140    |     112    |     144    |     170    |     130    |                       56    |  752      |
|           |                  | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      11    |       4    |      14    |      30    |      16    |                        1    |   76      |
|           |                  | F I R Lodged                   |       2    |       3    |       8    |       7    |       6    |                        0    |   26      |

| Sr. No.   | District          | Action Detail                  |   2020- 21 |   2021- 22 |   2022- 23 |   2023- 24 |   2024- 25 |   2025- 26 (Upto 15-07- 25) |     TOTAL |
|-----------|-------------------|--------------------------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|-----------------------------|-----------|
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     139    |     108    |     138    |     145    |     123    |                       53    |  706      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       1    |       0.89 |       1.12 |       1.07 |       0.85 |                        0.43 |    5.3536 |
| 5         | Tonk              | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     237    |     716    |     734    |     506    |     397    |                      193    | 2783      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      14    |      10    |       7    |      24    |       2    |                        4    |   61      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |      13    |     460    |       1    |      30    |       4    |                        2    |  510      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     241    |     719    |     724    |     484    |     401    |                      164    | 2733      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.95 |       2.81 |       2.17 |      18.84 |       0.93 |                        0.24 |   25.937  |
| 6         | Dausa             | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     179    |      76    |     133    |     104    |     158    |                       55    |  705      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      12    |       6    |       8    |      13    |      13    |                        4    |   56      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |      19    |       2    |      19    |      21    |      13    |                       12    |   86      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     180    |      72    |     133    |      86    |     155    |                       52    |  678      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.71 |       0.69 |       0.69 |       0.6  |       1    |                        0.33 |    4.0188 |
| 7         | Khairthal- Tizara | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |       4    |       8    |      17    |      16    |      12    |                        0    |   57      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       0    |       0    |       2    |       0    |       0    |                        0    |    2      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |       0    |       0    |       5    |       5    |       0    |                        0    |   10      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |       4    |       8    |      20    |      15    |      12    |                        0    |   59      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.03 |       0.07 |       0.12 |       0.14 |       0.1  |                        0    |    0.46   |
| 8         | Ajmer             | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     190    |     177    |     266    |     314    |     356    |                      105    | 1408      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      20    |      17    |      12    |      44    |      65    |                       13    |  171      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |      20    |      10    |      22    |      17    |      21    |                       25    |  115      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     208    |     200    |     290    |     323    |     370    |                      104    | 1495      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       1.29 |       1.32 |       1.85 |       1.96 |       2.07 |                        0.63 |    9.12   |

| Sr. No.   | District   | Action Detail                  |   2020- 21 |   2021- 22 |   2022- 23 |   2023- 24 |   2024- 25 |   2025- 26 (Upto 15-07- 25) |     TOTAL |
|-----------|------------|--------------------------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|-----------------------------|-----------|
| 9         | Beawar     | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |      75    |      88    |     167    |     171    |     249    |                      101    |  851      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       6    |       9    |       6    |      23    |      33    |                        7    |   84      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |       5    |       4    |      19    |      10    |      19    |                       26    |   83      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |      83    |      84    |     164    |     188    |     235    |                       88    |  842      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.42 |       0.54 |       0.99 |       1.32 |       1.06 |                        0.43 |    4.76   |
| 10        | Sirohi     | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     210    |     177    |     208    |     206    |     191    |                       55    | 1047      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       7    |       9    |      19    |      12    |       3    |                        3    |   53      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |       1    |       2    |      19    |       1    |       0    |                        1    |   24      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     199    |     163    |     196    |     195    |     185    |                       55    |  993      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       1.36 |       0.94 |       1.55 |       1.39 |       0.67 |                        0.35 |    6.2583 |
| 11        | Udaipur    | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     356    |     249    |     211    |     228    |     262    |                      173    | 1479      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      17    |      14    |      11    |      23    |      29    |                       17    |  111      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |      37    |      16    |      42    |      29    |      33    |                       27    |  184      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     423    |     262    |     224    |     230    |     263    |                      175    | 1577      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       4.74 |       3.11 |       1.84 |       2.89 |       2.41 |                        1.51 |   16.506  |
| 12        | Salumber   | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |      89    |     126    |     123    |      62    |      42    |                        9    |  451      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       6    |      19    |      30    |      13    |       3    |                        3    |   74      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |      13    |      25    |      17    |       4    |       0    |                        4    |   63      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |      88    |     121    |     117    |      58    |      38    |                        4    |  426      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       1.16 |       2.02 |       1.66 |       0.97 |       0.15 |                        0.05 |    6.0002 |
| 13        | Banswara   | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |      96    |      74    |     119    |     121    |     102    |                       68    |  580      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       6    |       7    |       5    |       9    |       8    |                        8    |   43      |

| Sr. No.   | District   | Action Detail                  |   2020- 21 |   2021- 22 |   2022- 23 |   2023- 24 |   2024- 25 |   2025- 26 (Upto 15-07- 25) |     TOTAL |
|-----------|------------|--------------------------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|-----------------------------|-----------|
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |      15    |       4    |       7    |      10    |       6    |                        2    |   44      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |      90    |      66    |      90    |     112    |     108    |                       68    |  534      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.6  |       0.71 |       1.05 |       1.29 |       0.48 |                        0.2  |    4.3341 |
| 14        | Pratapgarh | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |      56    |      49    |      79    |      80    |      61    |                       15    |  340      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       4    |       0    |       5    |      10    |      15    |                        2    |   36      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |       0    |       0    |       8    |       1    |       0    |                        0    |    9      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |      54    |      46    |      75    |      76    |      64    |                       13    |  328      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.48 |       0.41 |       0.65 |       0.43 |       0.45 |                        0.1  |    2.5248 |
| 15        | Dungarpur  | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     140    |     123    |      85    |      81    |     103    |                       80    |  612      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      26    |      19    |      39    |      20    |      17    |                        8    |  129      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |      15    |       1    |       7    |       2    |       6    |                        6    |   37      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     122    |     117    |      63    |      64    |     102    |                       75    |  543      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       1.45 |       1.4  |       0.88 |       0.74 |       1.08 |                        0.59 |    6.1569 |
| 16        | Bhilwara   | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |    1188    |     888    |     711    |     797    |     940    |                      314    | 4838      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |     112    |      77    |      79    |     152    |      67    |                       27    |  514      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |     330    |     213    |     239    |     213    |      87    |                       20    | 1102      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |    1131    |     941    |     660    |     707    |     978    |                      314    | 4731      |
|           |            | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |      13.93 |      11.88 |       8.73 |      10.39 |       9.69 |                        2.99 |   57.605  |
| 17        | Rajsamand  | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     354    |     330    |     248    |     469    |     289    |                       92    | 1782      |
|           |            | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      41    |      34    |      41    |      47    |      39    |                        6    |  208      |
|           |            | F I R Lodged                   |      13    |      14    |      39    |     136    |       4    |                       14    |  220      |
|           |            | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     332    |     323    |     230    |     445    |     283    |                       80    | 1693      |

| Sr. No.   | District          | Action Detail                  |   2020- 21 |   2021- 22 |   2022- 23 |   2023- 24 |   2024- 25 |   2025- 26 (Upto 15-07- 25) |     TOTAL |
|-----------|-------------------|--------------------------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|------------|-----------------------------|-----------|
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       2.68 |       2.49 |       2.06 |       3.85 |       2.38 |                        0.6  |   14.053  |
| 18        | Pali              | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     468    |     533    |     381    |     395    |     326    |                      141    | 2244      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      31    |      24    |      16    |      31    |      23    |                       12    |  137      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |       4    |       8    |       7    |      41    |      20    |                       17    |   97      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     450    |     527    |     380    |     379    |     336    |                      127    | 2199      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       5.39 |       6.89 |       4.69 |       5.15 |       3.45 |                        1.12 |   26.696  |
| 19        | Jaipur            | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |     813    |     955    |     993    |     747    |     526    |                      227    | 4261      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |      11    |      17    |      34    |      74    |      34    |                       14    |  184      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |      10    |       6    |       9    |      23    |      17    |                        3    |   68      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |     815    |     948    |    1007    |     763    |     581    |                      230    | 4344      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       4.1  |       6.67 |       6.85 |       7.33 |       3.91 |                        1    |   29.851  |
| 20        | Didwana- Kuchaman | Total Cases(Min./Trans./Stock) |      56    |      35    |      79    |     118    |      55    |                       23    |  366      |
|           |                   | no. of Illegal Mining Cases    |       6    |       4    |       7    |      38    |       1    |                        2    |   58      |
|           |                   | F I R Lodged                   |      12    |       1    |      22    |      31    |       6    |                        0    |   72      |
|           |                   | Seized Vehicles/Machines       |      50    |      38    |      72    |      85    |      50    |                       21    |  316      |
|           |                   | Recovered Penalty (In Crore)   |       0.47 |       0.45 |       0.45 |       0.67 |       0.28 |                        0.06 |    2.3797 |