Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Government collected a penalty of ₹40.73 crore following enforcement activities aimed at curbing illegal mining of minor minerals across the state.

Informing the Odisha Legislative Assembly about the actions taken to address illegal mining, Steel and Mines Minister Bibhuti Bhushan Jena stated the penalty was collected after conducting 3,123 raids between April 2024 and February 2025.

Responding to an unstarred query from Jeypore Congress legislator Tara Prasad Bahinipati, the Minister stated in a written reply the highest penalty amount—₹59,579,292—was collected in the Bhadrak Mining Circle, followed by ₹38,690,287.05 in the Cuttack Mining Circle.

In response to another query from Barabati-Cuttack Congress legislator Sofia Firdous, Jena informed the House in a written reply ₹10,12,88,769 was collected in 2023-24 as part of enforcement efforts to curb illegal sand transportation.

The Minister further added the Cuttack district recorded the highest penalty collection of ₹1,33,60,035, followed by ₹1,16,09,447 in the Jajpur district. The fines were imposed as part of measures to prevent fraudulent transportation using fake transit passes.

Jena also outlined the measures taken to monitor and regulate sand extraction from auctioned sites:

  • Close Surveillance: A monitoring system with CCTV surveillance and information boards has been implemented to track activities at extraction sites.
  • e-Transit Pass System: A time-bound, single-trip e-Transit Pass system has been introduced to ensure transparency in daily trip counts.
  • Strict Penalties: In line with National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines, heavy penalties are being imposed on individuals using fake e-TPs.
  • Transportation Regulations: As per an order by the Orissa High Court while hearing a PIL, sand transportation is permitted only between 9 PM and 7 AM.
  • Regulatory Committees: District-level task forces, sub-divisional level committees, and tehsil-level committees have been constituted to curb illegal excavation and transportation of minor minerals.