PANAJI
The Directorate of Mines and Geology has notified changes in the Goa Minor Mineral Concession Rules and set a 1,000 cubic meters per year upper limit for sand mining to all new leases to be issued.
The notification issued by the Director of Mines and Geology, Dr Suresh Shanbogue also aims to streamline the process of issuing leases to the traditional, manual sand miners.
Sand mining leases will be issued only in government demarcated zones and extraction activity will be permitted only only between 6 am to 6 pm.
Mechanized extraction will not be permitted, according to the notification. Also, all tools and machinery violating this condition will be seized, Dr Shanbogue states in the notification.
The notification also defines a 'traditional sand extractor' as one who belongs to the local community in Goa and whose livelihood is solely dependent on sand extraction by manual methods.
Also, he/she should have been granted lease for extraction of ordinary sand in Goa at any point between February 1974 and December 2010, including legal heirs of such persons.
The notification, however, makes one exception: those born and whose birth is registered in Goa, or whose parents or grandparents are born in Goa and who are residing in the State for at least 15 years are permitted to apply for sand extraction lease.
Of all new leases to be issued, 70% will be reserved for traditional sand miners and 30% to freshers, Dr Shanbogue specifies in the notification.
