Chennai, Sep 24 (IANS) Vehicles transporting sand and other minerals across Tamil Nadu will soon need QR-coded online permits, replacing paper transit documents. The system aims to prevent illegal shipments using forged passes, including those involving minerals classified as major and minor.
Natural Resources Minister D.K. Prabhu said permits would be generated through the Mineral Management System (MIMAS) portal, with manual passes discontinued upon launch. The department has yet to announce a launch date.
Each digital pass will carry details that can be checked against the quantity transported and the quarry from which the minerals were obtained.
Officials expect better oversight of shipments, royalty revenue and GST collections across the state. Weighbridges will also be connected to MIMAS so loads can be compared with the amounts recorded on permits.
Officials plan to use a control room to monitor transportation and flag overloaded vehicles.
Weighbridges serving some limestone quarry leases are already linked to the portal, and the department is working to include sites producing minor minerals.
The measures form part of a broader effort to digitise mining administration from extraction to transportation.
Trucks carrying minerals have been given until September 30 to install GPS devices, adding another means of tracking their journeys. Sand lorry operators have welcomed the move towards online documentation but raised concerns about liability when contractors supply fraudulent papers.
In a case in Thiruvallur district, about 14 trucks carrying soil were detained over allegedly fake transit passes and permits, and cases were registered against drivers and vehicle owners. The operators want electronic transport documents to carry confirmation from a government official so drivers and owners can verify their validity before accepting a load.
They have also sought closer oversight at crusher units to ensure that minerals dispatched from those sites comply with the rules. Lorry operators have also asked the department to speed up the connection of stone quarry weighbridges to the portal.
They argue that digital permits will have limited value if shipments leave extraction sites without reliable weighing and verification. They say illegal stone quarries continue to operate and have proposed that the government run quarries and supply manufactured sand and plastering sand directly.
The planned system’s main test will be whether authorities can verify permits and loads consistently, from the quarry gate to the vehicle’s destination.
–IANS
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