A Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report has revealed large-scale illegal stone, sand, and morang mining in Sonbhadra involving firms linked to BSP MLA Umashankar Singh. The report highlights collusion between leaseholders and district officials, who imposed penalties at royalty rates instead of auction rates, causing massive revenue losses to the Uttar Pradesh government.
According to the findings, Singh’s wife’s firm, Chhatra Shakti Infra-Construction, obtained a lease at `3,000 per cubic metre but carried out 33,604 cubic metres of illegal mining. Instead of recovering dues at auction rates, officials levied fines at the royalty rate of `160 per cubic metre, reducing liability from over `10 crore to just `3.22 crore. This manipulation led to a loss of nearly `60 crore to the state.
Similarly, Sai Ram Enterprises mined 62,072 cubic metres illegally. Instead of paying `18.68 crore, the company settled dues for only `5.95 crore. Together, the two firms gained benefits exceeding `19 crore.
The CAG report cites further cases across 11 mining offices, where 65 leaseholders extracted over 10.9 lakh cubic metres illegally, but just `9.18 crore was recovered against an estimated liability of `90.28 crore. Remote sensing through Google Earth confirmed mining beyond approved lease areas in 16 districts.
The report also referenced warnings issued in July 2023 by then Geology and Mining Director Roshan Jacob, who had recommended lease cancellations. However, subsequent administrative changes diluted action.
Singh, elected from Rasra seat in 2022, is among UP’s wealthiest legislators, with assets of nearly `54 crore as per ADR data.
