Patna: The Bihar government has moved to address delays in the auction of sand mining sites, pausing parts of the process while introducing measures aimed at clearing regulatory bottlenecks.
Officials say procedural hurdles—particularly around environmental approvals—have slowed the allocation of sand ghats across the state, affecting both revenue collection and construction activity.
Vijay Kumar Sinha, the deputy chief minister who also oversees the mines and geology department, has instructed authorities to streamline what he described as “overly complex” clearance systems. His directive focuses on expediting permissions and improving coordination between departments.
Out of 463 identified sand ghats, auctions have been completed for 360 sites. The remaining locations are awaiting environmental clearances, with the process for obtaining ‘Consent to Establish’ (CTE) and ‘Consent to Operate’ (CTO) cited as a major cause of delay.
The state has also written to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, requesting simplification of approval procedures to help accelerate the process.
Officials believe that resolving these issues could allow pending auctions to proceed quickly, boosting state revenues and supporting infrastructure development. Increased sand availability is also expected to stabilise market prices, benefiting construction sectors such as roads, bridges and housing.
