HYDERABAD: The Telangana government has banned transportation of sand to other states and announced that sand can be extracted free of cost for local requirements. Any sand lorry found without a valid waybill issued by Telangana State Mineral Development Corporation (TSMDC) will be seized.

The government issued Telangana State Sand Mining Rules 2015 on Thursday. It also handed over the sand related responsibility to a district level sand committee (DLSC) for identification of sand-bearing areas under the chairmanship of district collector with the joint collector as the vice-chairman of the committee. Other officers such as ITDA project director concerned, deputy director of ground water department, officials from irrigation, rural water supply, assistant director of mines and geology are members.

TSMDC is empowered to de-cast and auction sand in the state. The corporation would extract sand by engaging a contractor for the specified areas through a competitive bidding procedure. In case of sand cast in patta land, the pattadar would be allowed to de-cast the sand to make the land fit for agriculture. To eliminate vested interests, no agent, GPA/lease holders, other than the pattadar, would be involved in the de-casting process. The government also imposed ban on de-casting of sand by private individuals or agencies and stocking, storing, processing and trading of sand, including manufactured one, would not be allowed under Mineral Dealer Rules, 2000.

As per the policy, VAT exemption, power subsidy and other incentives would be given to manufacturers of sand from crushed rock. With respect to meeting sand requirements for weaker section housing schemes, prior permission should be obtained from panchayat secretary of that particular village for supply of sand free of cost.

The TSMDC will fix the sale price of the sand from time to time and the member-convenor of the district committee will ensure sand availability in the district. The period of allotment for extraction will be for five years from the date of agreement.