KATHMANDU, JUNE 17
The federal government has made an amendment to the 'Standard on Extraction, Sale, and Management of Stones, Pebbles, and Sand, 2020' to make legal provisions timely and up-to-date.
The amendment imposes ban on extraction of river products from mid-July to mid-September each year.
Likewise, the revised provisions ensure easy supply of river and mine-based products for infrastructure development activities by discouraging excessive and indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources. As per the amendment, local levels should extract and collect river and mine-based products from the areas as specified in the approved environmental study report. If required, they may carry out extraction and collection of such construction materials by relocating settlements to safer places as per the decision of the concerned district disaster management committee to avert possible disaster from floods, landslides and earthquakes.
Stones, pebbles and sand washed away by flooded rivers and streams may also be collected by the local units. The standard stipulates a provision for designating certain areas to operate mine and crusher industries.
"The local levels may refine and sell sand through river mining by using improved technologies and constructing dams or embankments without changing the river course," the amendment says.
"A local unit shall prepare an environmental study report and get it approved by the concerned village or municipal executive body for extraction, collection and sale of river and minebased products. They may award a contract to registered companies or organisations to carry out these tasks at the rate approved by the executive body," it says. If the areas designated for extraction and collection of river and minebased products fall under jurisdiction of two or more local levels, the work can be performed by making a joint team.
"Extraction and collection of construction materials should be carried out by using labour-based technology to create employment opportunities," reads the standard.
It requires the concerned contractor to make arrangements of health, hygiene, sanitation, safety and accident insurance for workers engaged in extraction, collection and transportation of construction materials. It prohibits extraction and collection of stones, pebbles and sand from the Chure region.
"Construction materials should be transported to the destination by covering them with tarpaulin to prevent dust pollution on the road. Once applicable charge or fee is levied by one local unit for the transportation of construction materials from one place to another, no other local levels or provinces shall be allowed to collect additional charges for the same consignment," it says.
Likewise, the amendment has made a provision of a nine-member central level coordination and facilitation committee led by secretary at the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration for providing policy direction with regard to extraction, sale and management of river and other mine-based construction materials in a systematic manner.
A version of this article appears in the print on June 18, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
