JK Lakshmi Cement gets green nod for Rs 120-crore expansion project

JK Lakshmi Cement has received environment clearance for expansion of its limestone mine output in Rajasthan, entailing an investment of Rs 120 crore.

The company's proposal was to enhance the production capacity of its limestone mine located in Sirohi district from 8 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 13 MTPA. The mined limestone will be supplied to a cement plant in Sirohi.

"The Environment Ministry has examined the proposal of JK Lakshmi Cement and granted the environment clearance for expansion of its limestone mine in Rajasthan," a senior government official said.

The green nod to the project was given subject to some conditions. The total cost of the project is estimated to be Rs 120 crore, the official added.

Among conditions specified, the company has been told that the green clearance would be subject to requisite clearances from the the National Board for Wildlife, if any, as applicable for this mining project.

The company has been asked to obtain consent to operation from the State Pollution Control Board.

Since the company has not obtained the necessary permission from the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) for intersecting ground water table, the company has been asked to carry out a detailed hydro-geological study and to obtain the recommendations of CGWA.

According to the proposal, 43,333 tonnes per day of limestone and 12,233 tonnes of waste wold be handled for the proposed expansion project. The limestone produced from the mine face wold be transported to crushers to be installed within the lease area via dumpers, while waster wold be transported to earmarked dump site.

Crushed limestone will be further sent to the cement plant via cover conveyor belt and no local transport infrastructure would be required for the proposed project. Water would be sourced from West Banas dam.

The company has limestone mine lease area of 390.62 hectare. It is an opencast mine and the lease is valid up to 2030.

JK Lakshmi Cement, part of JK group, is engaged in the business of cement manufacturing since 1982. It has a plant at Sirohi with a production capacity of 5.3 MTPA. It also has a cement grinding unit in Gujarat and Haryana.