Chandigarh, Jun 6 (PTI) Punjab Mining Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer on Tuesday said the state government will make 34 commercial sand mining clusters operational in the state.

He said the rates at commercial mining clusters will be capped at Rs 5.50 per cubic foot, which is being charged at public mining sites.

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The state government has set a target to operationalise 100 commercial clusters, said an official release quoting the minister.

The auction process of 22 mining clusters having a quantity of about 102 lakh metric tonne has been completed and the auction of 12 other mining clusters having a quantity of 21 lakh MT is under process, he said.

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The minister was chairing a review meeting of the mines and geology department to take stock of the present public mining sites in the state. Currently, there are 60 public mining sites in the state.

Hayer directed the field officers to ensure fair practices at the public mining sites. He also reviewed the action taken against illegal mining by field offices.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)