CHENNAI: Defending industry practices, representatives of stone quarry and crusher units operating across the state during a stakeholder meeting chaired by Minister for Natural Resources T K Prabhu in Chennai on Thursday blamed the previous governments’ “silence” to the “massive” mismatch between the demand and permitted supply of construction aggregates as the “root cause” of the violations in quarrying activities in Tamil Nadu.
According to the operators, the state’s daily requirement of construction aggregates is around 5.25 lakh units while the government’s permitted quarry production capacity is a mere 1.2 lakh units. Construction aggregates include crushed stone, M-Sand, P-Sand, gravel, rough stone and other related materials.
“The closure of 27 sand quarries in November 2023 led to a sharp rise in demand for M-Sand. While the government expected quarries to supply the materials required for construction and infrastructure projects, it failed to revise mining rules or increase production limits in line with market demand. Without regulatory violations, the price of M-Sand could surge from Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000 per unit,” a quarry operator said.
Addressing allegations that quarry operators extracted minerals beyond defined limits, a participant in the meeting said, “The previous governments -- both the AIADMK and the DMK – permitted these practices to keep the prices of materials low. Any strict curbs on quarry operations would severely affect ongoing projects undertaken by private developers, the public works department, state highways, NHAI and others.”
Another quarry owner said many operators were unaware of the provisions of the 2016 mining plan, which mandated systematic bench mining with stepped excavations instead of vertical quarry faces. “If the drone survey findings are strictly enforced, nearly 85% of stone quarries could face closure for violations. This would lead to a sharp increase in the prices of construction aggregates and severely disrupt development and infrastructure activities across the state,” he said.
K Chinnaswamy, president of stone quarry, crusher and lorry owners association, denied claims that the organisation had hiked the prices of M-Sand, P-Sand and other aggregates after the suspension of 67 quarries. “The market price of M Sand is about Rs 5,000 per unit, while P-Sand and crushed stone are priced at around Rs 6,000 and Rs 4,000 respectively.
Contrary to allegations of a price hike, we have been selling these products at Rs 200 to Rs 400 less than the prevailing rates in recent days. This meeting had originally been scheduled seven to eight days earlier. However, in the days leading up to it, vested interests circulated false information in an attempt to create a rift between the quarry industry and the government,” he said.
He further said the association has urged the government to regularise the violations by permitting them to pay the required royalty. “Going forward, we are willing to comply fully with the mining regulations and operate within the prescribed norms,” he said.
Officials from the geology and mining department said that the issues raised during the meeting, which was held at the Directorate of Geology and Mining in Guindy, would be examined and necessary action taken.
Don't hike price: Minister to owners
CHENNAI: Assuring to look into their demand to regulate stone quarrying, Minister T K Prabhu directed the operators not to increase the prices of M-Sand, P-Sand, gravel and other construction aggregates but to continue to sell them at rates fixed by the government.
After chairing the stakeholder meeting involving representatives of stone quarry and crusher units, sand lorry owners’ associations and brick manufacturers at the Directorate of Geology and Mining, the minister also instructed the operators not to overload trucks and avoid using crackers at stone quarries.
Earlier at the meeting, representatives of the Tamil Nadu Sand Lorry Owners Federation and the Tamil Nadu State Sand Lorry Owners Federation suggested that the government take over the operation of crusher units and directly sell construction aggregates to consumers.
