Sand Reality Almost everywhere in Bharat, for almost last three years, sand for construction is available to private constructors at Rs. 5500 per brass. It was available a few years ago at Rs. 2500 per brass. The price rise took place within few months after government banned sand mining. Government banned sand mining but did not refrain from issuing NOCs for new housing proposals. The result was, price rise. On most projects, no tax receipt is given for transaction involving sand. It is a source of black money. If government issues NOCs for new proposed constructions, government itself should be responsible to make the sand available to Citizens at no extra price and without ration, in open market. Government did not do it and so it was a mistake on the part of those who governed the affairs. In fact, government agencies should have proactively checked for defaulters and forced on the sand suppliers to issue genuine tax receipts. They did not do it. Government is aware that in the business of sand supply, mafias are operative and they are doing black marketing. They are not issuing tax receipts. But government expects a helpless common man to complaint against mafias to make government machinery act on them. Sorry state of affairs. Since government had banned sand mining, if new NOCs were also restricted, then, although not acceptable, government could have proved itself clean. But on issuance of NOCs that cannot be said about government. Rather, it can be suspected that the decision to ban sand mining itself had sinister motives. Black money was generated. It was appropriated by all and sundry who were capable of having hands on it. When black money thus percolates, from ground level to high circles, lumens element thrives on it. That makes life of a common man difficult and degrades the standard of public life. The question is “what is an extent of it”. To explore that, let us take some figures available at hand. 1. Bharat’s cement production was 250 million tones in 2012. Please refer IBEF cement industry report May 2013. 2. Bharat is neither big importer nor big exporter of cement in world market. So, domestic production can be considered for domestic consumption. 3. Average ratio of cement to sand may be considered as 1:3. Hence annual sand requirement of Bharat can be estimated as 750 million tones. Out of this, 400 million tones can be considered to be used for private housing projects and private industrial use. 4. Density of sand considered as 100 lb per foot cube, converting 400 million tones to pounds, we arrive at 8800million foot cube. 5. 100 cubic feet make one brass. So, sand supplied to private sector was 88 million brasses per year. 6. Price rise Rs 3000 per brass was all contributing to additional black money. For 88 million brasses per year, least estimated black money generated by sand is approximately Rs 26000 crores per year. It continued for three years. Cumulatively, this amounts to approximately one lac crore rupees. Now, it fits in line with 2G, CWG and coal scam. Yet, this has not hit the headlines. More serious part is the fact that amount in other scams or misdeeds are freezed once the matters are exposed. The amount involved in case of sand can multiply year after year till the policy is corrected by government.
Posted on: Sun, 04 Aug 2013 18:22:54 +0000
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