Landowners Can Now Apply for Mining Licence

Punjab government on Tuesday said that the new mining policy fundamentally shifts the control of sand and gravel resources directly into the hands of the people by allowing individual landowners to do mining after obtaining permission from the mining department.

- HT Correspondent

CHANDIGARH: Punjab government on Tuesday said that the new mining policy fundamentally shifts the control of sand and gravel resources directly into the hands of the people by allowing individual landowners to do mining after obtaining permission from the mining department.

This will effectively curb corruption and significantly increase state revenue, said finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema and mining and geology minister Barinder Goyal.

Cheema and Goyal also unveiled standardised online application forms for landowner mining sites (LMS) and crusher mining sites (CRMS) on the official Punjab mining portal.

Cheema said the key highlight of the new policy is the empowerment of landowners as under this revamped framework, landowners will now have the direct right to mine sand and gravel on their land without the need for auctions.

"We are committed to ensuring complete transparency and accountability in the mining sector, in contrast to the previous SAD-BJP and Congress regimes that encouraged illegal mining to fill their coffers," Cheema said.