Tiruppur Quarries Face Fines for Illegal Mining Beyond Permitted Limits

Two private quarries in Tiruppur district have been found guilty of large-scale illegal mining, prompting authorities to initiate penalty proceedings.

Tiruppur District Collector T. Christuraj has directed the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) to impose fines on two private stone quarries in Kodangipalayam Power Readymix and SA Ganesan for mining beyond the limits permitted by law.

The action follows an inspection by a taluk-level task force, initiated after local farmers lodged complaints about illegal mining activities. According to the inspection conducted in late March, Power Readymix had illegally extracted 2.81 lakh cubic metres of stone and 36,634 cubic metres of gravel well above the approved limit. SA Ganesan quarry was also found to have mined 7,434 cubic metres of gravel in excess.

The report was forwarded by the Palladam tahsildar to the district collector, who in turn issued orders on April 29 under Rule 36-A of the Tamil Nadu Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1959, and G.O. (Ms). No.170 dated August 5, 2020, instructing the RDO to impose “appropriate penalty action” and report.

R. Sathish Kumar, State Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Farmers Protection Association’s Legal Awareness Wing, said the quarries had illegally continued to function even after the expiration of their licenses in 2016 “We had planned to protest on April 30 in front of the RDO office. But following the collector’s order, we have postponed it. We urge the government to take immediate action not just against these two, but all illegally operating quarries,” he said.

The crackdown follows mounting concerns from the farming community, which fears the environmental and agricultural impact of unchecked mining in the region.

Attempts to contact Tiruppur RDO Mohanasundaram for comment were unsuccessful.

This incident highlights ongoing issues with mining regulation enforcement in Tamil Nadu, particularly regarding expired licences and over-extraction of natural resources.