CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government through the Thoothukudi collector on February 10 ordered five beach sand mining companies to pay Rs 2,002.7 crore towards royalties and cost of minerals which were allegedly unlawfully mined and exported from the Thoothukudi port from January 2014 to December 2016.
These demand orders form part of the government’s decision to recover Rs 5,832 crore from the firms which allegedly mined excess amount of beach sand minerals like Garnet, Ilmenite, Rutile, Zircon, Sillimanite and Leucoxene from 2002 to 2016 as per reports submitted by Madras High Court appointed amicus curiae Dr V Suresh. The report pegs the total illegally transported raw sand alone at 88.4 lakh tonnes. The government had ordered a complete ban on mining in 2013. The Madras High Court earlier this week had ordered a CBI probe into the case.
While the December 16 orders by Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari and Thoothukudi collectors were for the illegally mined sand in the pre-ban period (2013), the February 10 orders are for 17.61 lakh tonnes of beach sand minerals mined illegally after the enforcement of the ban and eventually exported through the port. This was based on data given by the assistant commissioner of Customs, Thoothukudi.
While VV Minerals has been ordered to pay Rs 913.03 crore towards cost of mineral and royalties for the post-ban period, Tvl Industrial mineral company has been issued an order of Rs 276.08 crore, Transworld Garnet India Pvt Ltd Rs 196.66 crore, Beach Minerals Sands company and its sister concerns Rs 425.64 crore and Indian Ocean Garnet Sands company Rs 191.29 crore.
The recovery proceedings have been initiated under section 21(5) of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
In the order issued to VV Minerals, the Thoothukudi collector said they reserve the right to initiate recovery proceedings against the firms for illegal export of beach sand minerals during the same period through ports other than Thoothukudi as well.
The three collectors had, in January 2024, issued show cause notices to all the miners for recovery of this sum based on reports submitted by the amicus curiae and a special committee headed by senior IAS officer Gagandeep Singh Bedi and data provided by the assistant commissioner of Customs, Thoothukudi on the quantum of Beach Sand Minerals exported and sale value realised by private companies.