BALANGIR: The district administration has imposed a fine of Rs 7.5 crore on private infrastructure company ARSS Ltd for illegal stone quarrying.
The private firm was penalised by the district administration for engaging in illegal stone crushing and transporting the same.
Sources said 10 days back, sarpanch of Digsira panchayat Golak Bihari Singh Bhoi along with some villagers had met Titilagarh Sub-Collector Somesh Upadhyay and demanded action against illegal stone mining carried out by ARSS.
Basing on the allegation, Upadhyay, district mining officer Prabhat Ojha and Titilagarh tehsildar Anand Panda visited the quarrying site and found many irregularities.
Sarpanch Bhoi alleged that ARSS was involved in illegal stone quarrying and mining in an area which was not allotted to it.
“This has caused widespread damage to the mountain and the surrounding ecosystem besides the nearby villages,” he said.
Sub-Collector Upadhyay said the fine of Rs 7.5 crore was imposed on ARSS basing on the inquiry report submitted by the mining officer.