A mammoth crusher machine at a stone quarry in Barkatha, Hazaribagh. Picture by Vishvendu Jaipuriar

Ranchi/Hazaribagh, Oct. 18: Hazaribagh’s thriving illegal stone mining business enjoying the patronage of the rich and mighty, including at least one minister and a well-known politician, has come under the scrutiny of Jharkhand High Court that has asked the state government to crack down on the activity that not only pollutes the environment but also causes massive revenue losses.

The bench of acting Chief Justice D.N. Patel and Justice S.N. Prasad, while hearing a petition by advocate Hemant Kumar Shikarwar on Thursday, directed the Jharkhand government to inform what action it had taken to stop stone quarries without valid environmental clearances and licences from functioning in Hazaribagh. The court also sought the copies of FIRs that the administration has reportedly filed against businessmen engaged in the illegal trade.

Shikarwar, a resident of Hazaribagh, complained in his petition that illegal mining was flourishing in the district with the local administration and the state mines department doing little to crack down on the quarries. Some of these places where this illegal activity is going on — Bhusai, Ichak, Sadam and Tepsa — are located barely a few kilometres from the district headquarters and function right under the nose of the authorities, he pointed out.

“The mines and illegal stone quarries generate tonnes of dust that pollute the environment and endanger human and animal lives, besides damaging crops. Explosives are being used to break rocks and boulders into smaller pieces without obtaining necessary licences and permits. Large cracks have surfaced in schools and other buildings at villages because of uncontrolled explosions,” Shikarwar told the court.

Mining officer of Hazaribagh Narayan Ram admitted that those running illegal stone units functioned as an organised sector and used money and muscle to cower the administration. “It’s not easy to crack down on the mafia, who don’t think twice before attacking the officials who go to demolish the illegal units. But this does not mean that we have not acted against illegal units. This year, I lodged 204 cases.”

Ram could not give the exact number of illegal stone quarries in Hazaribagh while saying that the units having valid licences number only 40. But sources said the number of illegal stone mines had shot up to more than 1,500 in 10 years.

They added that earlier there was a provision to grant temporary licence against Rs 5,000 as application fee and Rs 2 lakh annual fee. But with the Supreme Court directing the state to grant temporary licences to only those having valid environmental clearances, owners of stone quarries landed in a spot and used back channels to run their units.

“It has become very easy for anyone to start stone crushers in Hazaribagh if the person enjoys the blessings of the mighty and influential. It’s an open secret that a number of politicians offer cover to the mining mafia. In fact, a well-known leader of Jharkhand has a stake in the illegal stone business in Hazaribagh while a minister supports one group of mafia,” an official added.

As for losses caused to the state exchequer, the official said it amounted to crores. “The government charges Rs 9,000 per annum for one acre of land used for mining purposes and Rs 63 per metric tonne of stone chips produced. With crusher units producing chips between 60 and 100 metric tonnes per day, imagine the money the state could have made.”

The high court will again take up the matter in November.