Three stone crusher units fined nearly Rs 5 cr in J-K

Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district on Friday imposed a fine of nearly Rs 5 crore on three stone crusher units for illegal storage and consumption of raw material, an official spokesperson said.

The fines were imposed by the District Mining Department to ensure strict enforcement of the Jammu and Kashmir Minor Minerals Concession, Storage, Transportation of Minerals and Prevention of Illegal Mining Rules, he said.

During an inspection of the stone crusher units, it was found that they had illegally dumped huge quantities of minor minerals within their premises in violation of the rules, the spokesperson said.

Accordingly, he said, notices were served to them.

A fine of Rs 3.42 crore was imposed on S K Stone Crusher and Rs 80.50 lakh on Magnum Stone Crusher, both located in Pandori village, and Rs 72.24 on Shiv Baba Stone Crusher in Logate village, he added.

According to the spokesperson, the three crusher units were directed to deposit the fine at the office of District Mineral Office within seven days.

They were also asked to produce relevant sale-purchase records of their respective units in the office of the deputy commissioner within three days from the date of issuance of the notices, he said.

The spokesperson said the three units were warned of strict action if they fail to comply with the directions.