Karnataka has decided to allow stone mining and crusher units to resume operations after work was suspended last month following two mishaps involving explosive materials in quarries in Chikkaballapur and Shivamogga earlier this year. Over a dozen people were killed in these two incidents.

The State has suffered a revenue loss of ₹300 crore due to closure of stone mining and crusher units, said Murugesh R Nirani, Minister for Mines and Geology. “With the State’s economy and employment in mind, the government has decided to allow operations of all stalled stone mining and crusher units. The Mines and Geology department has issued a circular allowing stone mining in quarries,” he added.

For resuming the units, the owners of quarries and stone crushers have been told to give an undertaking to the authorities stating they would abide by the rules and regulations and would submit NoC (No-Objection Certificate) from Centre’s Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS) to use explosives within 90 days, Nirani said.

Construction activities have been hit, quarry owners have been laying off large numbers of workers, and prices of raw materials have suddenly skyrocketed, he said. There are over 2,500 stone quarries and stone crushing units in the State.

Owners plea

The owners and associations involved in this business had recently met Nirani and requested him to allow resumption of mining activities.

Nirani observed, “It is impossible to operate stone quarries and crusher units without using explosives. I The Mines and Geology department has decided to ease the process by changing the present guidelines and obtaining undertaking for resuming operations.”

of women, child, aged and differently-abled persons, basic infrastructure, irrigation, conservation of power and water.”

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