BHUBANESWAR: Amid concerns over scarcity of sand for construction purposes, the Odisha government has introduced new rules allowing panchayat samitis to manage the sources.
As per the new framework, a seven-member committee headed by sarpanch will be constituted at panchayat-level to manage the sand source. The lease deed will be executed by the sarpanch as the chairman of the committee.
The committee comprises ward member, junior engineer, revenue inspector, president of gram panchayat-level federation and one block staff. Panchayat executive officer will be member-convener of the committee.
With the state witnessing an increased demand for sand due to rapid infrastructure development, unauthorised mining and price hikes have become a major concern. The government hopes that empowering panchayat samitis will help regulate the sector effectively while ensuring the availability of sand for priority projects.
The tagged block staff in the panchayat committee will recommend the requirement of sand based on the progress of construction to the BDO for beneficiary-oriented projects. The BDOs will assess the sand requirements for various projects and communicate those to the executive officer of the zilla parishad (ZP). This will specifically cater to individual beneficiary-oriented projects and community assets undertaken by departments at the grassroots level.
The ZP executive officer will place the assessment of requirement of sand before the district-level committee headed by the concerned collector. The committee will comprise 12 members, including SP, DFO, ADM revenue, district mining officer (DMO), sub-collector and two BDOs and two tehsildars.
The district committee will identify the feasible unsettled sand sources and map the sources with blocks in need of sand. After identification of sand quarry, reservation of sand quarry would be granted in favour of BDO for a period of five years, which may extend for another one year as per requirement.
A senior official of the Steel and Mines department said, the DMO will assist the BDO in preparation of the mining plan, and obtain clearances. All transactions will be monitored through integrated minor mineral management system (i4MS) and there will be a squad for each sand source headed by tehsildar to prevent theft, over-exploitation and other corrupt practices, he said.
“Decentralising sand management will ensure better accessibility and transparency in sand allocation while curbing illegal mining. The panchayat samitis will be responsible for overseeing sand availability, regulating its use, and ensuring fair distribution,” the official added.