GPS technology to be used to curb illegal mining

Raipur: Chhattisgarh will be using Global Positioning System (GPS) to curb illegal mining in the state, official sources said on Friday.

Chief Minister Raman Singh has asked officials to use GPS and other modern technologies to track and stop illegal mining, they said.

GPS is a space-based navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather. GPS satellites are used for navigational, surveying, mapping, routing, charting and time distribution purposes.

Singh has said that mineral-rich Chhattisgarh should emerge as a model state in curbing the menace by deploying sophisticated equipment, the sources maintained.

The state has been posting higher revenues from mining activities over the years, they said.

In 2003-04, Chhattisgarh earned Rs 637 crore in mining revenues, which shot up to Rs 2461.46 crore in 2010-11. The state has set a revenue target of Rs 2,700 crore in the current financial year, the sources said.

To curb illegal mining, which causes huge losses to the exchequer, 45 posts have been set up in different parts of the state to keep an eye on excavation and transportation of ores, they said.

PTI