Chennai, July 29: The Tamil Nadu government is preparing to make significant changes in the state’s natural resources department. A comprehensive digital monitoring system will be introduced to curb illegal mining, enhance transparency, and significantly increase mining revenue in the coming years.
This plan was reviewed in a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay earlier this week. The government aims to integrate all mineral mining activities into a unified online monitoring platform. The meeting included the Chief Secretary, Finance Secretary, and several key department secretaries.
According to government sources, the natural resources department generated approximately ₹4,500 crores in revenue during the fiscal year 2025-26 through mining lease fees, royalties, mineral land taxes, contributions to the green fund, and payments to the District Mineral Foundation Trust.
The government believes that strict technology-based monitoring and improved compliance with regulations could increase annual revenue to around ₹6,500 crores in the initial phase. The target is to raise this figure to ₹9,000 crores in the next few years.
Officials state that a significant portion of rough stone and other minerals extracted from both leased and unleased areas currently falls outside the purview of mineral land taxes and royalties. This results in substantial revenue losses for the government each year.
To address this issue, the government will implement a digital weighbridge system across the state. This system will be connected to a central online platform, allowing for digital monitoring of every mineral load exiting the mines. Officials acknowledge that strict regulations may initially slow down mining activities, but this will lead to better compliance and a steady increase in revenue in the long run.
Meanwhile, the government’s crackdown on illegal mining is already evident. Last month, operations at 67 stone quarries in the districts of Tenkasi, Kanyakumari, Virudhunagar, and Madurai were halted. Inspections revealed that many quarries were engaged in illegal mining beyond the approved limits.
Authorities inspected a total of 431 quarries, finding violations in 155 of them. Penalties have been imposed on several quarry operators, while processes for the remaining cases are ongoing. So far, fines totaling ₹78 crores have been levied under the Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959. However, some quarry owners have appealed against these fines, which are currently under review.
According to government data, the state earned ₹433 crores from mining leases for limestone, lignite, marl, graphite, magnesite, and atomic minerals in the fiscal year 2024-25.
Recently, the state government imposed a three-month ban on the transportation of aggregates used in construction to neighboring states. Following this, a 15% reduction in the movement of such minerals has been recorded. The government states that all these measures aim to curb illegal mining, prevent revenue loss, and ensure complete transparency in the mining sector.
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