Gandhinagar: Gujarat government today said it
would recover Rs 658 crore royalty from illegal miners in the
two districts of Porbandar and Junagadh.
In reply to a question on cases against illegal mining,
Minister of State for Mines and Minerals Saurabh Patel said
the government has filed 113 cases against illegal mining in
Porbandar and 86 cases in Junagadh districts.
The minister added that heavy penalty has been imposed
and police cases filed against illegal miners. "We have to
recover Rs 658 crore royalty from them," Patel said.
Congress leader Arjun Modhvadia alleged in the House that
the state government has targeted "small fry and big fishes
have been left out".
The issue of illegal mining has come to fore in the state
after the murder of RTI activist Amit Jethwa who was allegedly
killed after he filed a petition in the high court regarding
illegal mining on the periphery of Gir forests.
PTI
First Published: Tuesday, September 07, 2010, 23:58