The government has announced that it will introduce a new sand policy within eight days. Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule informed the assembly that under the policy, poor people constructing homes will receive five brass of sand for free. (‘Brass’ is used to quantify volume of materials like sand, gravel or rubble.)

Bawankule said the government plans to include a provision in the policy that will hold tehsildars accountable if they do not allocate sand to beneficiaries within 15 days. He made this announcement while responding to a calling attention motion raised by BJP and Congress legislators, Narendra Mehta and Nana Patole.

“We have studied the sand policies of various states and drafted a policy, which has been made available in the public domain. So far, we have received 235 suggestions from the public. The goal of this policy is to balance demand and supply and eliminate illegal sand smuggling,” Bawankule said.

The BJP leader said that apart from river and creek sand, the government will promote the use of sand (M-sand) made from crushed stone. “M-sand can be used by Public Works and Irrigation Departments for construction purposes. To reduce the dependence on river sand, we will provide subsidies to M-sand manufacturers,” the minister said.

Bawankule said that reservations will be made for sand at every depot and auction site. Collectors and chief executives of district administrations will be required to submit, through tehsildars, lists of homes eligible for zero royalty sand. Private sellers will also have to provide five brass of sand to individuals building homes.

Bawankule said police have limited authority under the existing sand policy, but the new policy will empower both police and revenue officials to take action against sand smuggling.

Meanwhile, BJP MLA Sudhir Mungantiwar said the five brass of sand should be released within 15 days of application, failing which action should be taken against the responsible tehsildar. He informed the house that approximately 6,000 vehicles involved in illegal sand transport had been seized in the past two years and later returned to owners after collecting penalties. Mungantiwar suggested that instead of returning these vehicles, the government should retain them and allocate them for public use to generate employment and revenue.

Shiv Sena MLA Bhaskar Jadhav raised concerns about illegal sand excavation in the Konkan region using suction pumps. In response, Bawankule assured that an investigation would be conducted into illegal sand mining in Ratnagiri and Raigad districts and action would be taken. He also announced the creation of a public portal for lodging complaints related to illegal sand excavation and smuggling.