Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has collected ₹27.4 crore in penalties up to September of the current financial year from violators involved in illegal extraction of minor minerals, including sand, Steel and Mines Minister Bibhuti Bhusan Jena informed the Assembly on Thursday.
Replying to a question, Jena said that the state had collected ₹48.4 crore in penalties during the 2024–25 fiscal, and added that sustained enforcement measures—raids, vehicle seizures, and strict penal action—have been central to the drive against illegal sand mining.
According to official data, the government conducted 4,426 raids across Odisha in 2024–25, followed by 2,592 raids up to September this year. These operations led to the seizure of 4,676 vehicles last fiscal and 3,866 vehicles in the current fiscal up to September.
In terms of penalty collection, Balasore district topped the list in 2024–25 with ₹7.17 crore, followed by Mayurbhanj (₹5.21 crore), Rayagada (₹4.52 crore), and Cuttack (₹4.31 crore).
This year, up to September, Keonjhar emerged as the highest collector with ₹5 crore, trailed by Balasore (₹3.58 crore), Jajpur (₹2.95 crore), and Koraput (₹2.1 crore).
Jena also clarified that the government has not received any reports of riverbank erosion linked to illegal sand extraction.
Outlining the preventive framework, the minister said the state has introduced a range of measures to curb mineral theft and protect revenue. These include GPS-based demarcation of sand mining lease areas and pillar-based boundary marking to ensure clarity of extraction zones.
To strengthen surveillance, CCTV cameras have been installed at sand sources, and drone surveys are conducted wherever excessive excavation is suspected. Lessees are required to maintain buffer zones along riverbanks and earmark safety zones within lease areas where mining activity is barred.
Equipment and vehicles used in illegal extraction are seized, and penalties are imposed as per law. To reinforce ground-level monitoring, the government has set up district-level task forces, along with sub-divisional and tehsil-level committees comprising officials from the revenue, mining, forest, and police departments, Jena told the House.
