Patna, Apr 14: Mining licences of 194 stone crusher units operating in Bihar's Rohtas district have been cancelled following the rrevokation of their no-objection certificates (NOCs) by the state pollution control board, an official said Saturday.
"Licences of 194 stone crusher units have been cancelled. We are likely to cancel more licences in coming days," District Magistrate of Rohtas Sandeep Kumar R. Pudakalkatti said.
He said that notices have been issued to the crusher units to shut operations and remove their installations from the mines in Rohtas hills within a week.
"The administration will demolish the installations, seize the machinery and lodge criminal cases for illegal mining against the units if they fail to comply," Pudakalkatti told IANS over telephone from Rohtas, about 150 km from here.
Last year, a case was lodged against Gopal Narayan Singh, former president of Bharatiya Janata Party's Bihar unit, after a crackdown on his unit by the economic offences wing for illegal mining in protected forest areas in Rohtas.
According to officials of state mines and geology department, illegal mining is still going on in districts like Jamui, Munger, Kaimur, Banka, Bhagalpur and Jehanabad
