Srinagar, Oct 30 (KNO): The Jammu and Kashmir government has informed that a total of 1,512 short-term mining permissions have been issued to local residents across several districts to facilitate the extraction of construction materials such as sand, gravel, and clay, while also supporting local livelihoods.
According to the reply furnished by the Mining Department to an unstarred question tabled by Saif-ud-din in the Legislative Assembly, the department, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), has granted Mining Leases of RBM blocks in multiple districts including Jammu (30), Samba (19), Reasi (25), Rajouri (22), Poonch (15), Udhampur (7), Kathua (14), Kulgam (19), Baramulla (20), Pulwama (4), and Ganderbal (2) among others.
The government said these leases aim to ensure the availability of key construction materials for developmental projects of national and UT importance.
In order to safeguard the livelihood of local residents, the Government of J&K issued S.O. 599 of 2022 on November 15, 2022, allowing short-term and disposal permits for the manual extraction of sand, silt, and clay by local Hanjis, Khanis, and Muleteers on payment of royalty and other charges — without requiring environmental clearance or e-auction.
The department said the amendment was introduced to support the lower strata of society and ensure uninterrupted construction activity for both government and private projects.
As per official figures, the highest number of permissions were issued in Pulwama (565), followed by Baramulla (331), Anantnag (218), Bandipora (153), and Kulgam (141). Other districts like Kupwara (58), Ganderbal (25), Budgam (11), and Srinagar (10) also received permissions under the same provision—(KNO)