KATHUA: District Mineral Officer Rajinder Singh, in a tough move against illicit mining, fined a chain excavator Rs. 5 lakh for extracting minor minerals from the Ravi River bank here today. The fine was applied based on the amount of dirt dug up in the river and the measurements taken from pits after the chain machine was taken with the help of a police team. The owner of a stone crusher used a chain excavator to dig and lift river bed material in the Ravi River at Taraf Tajwal areas, which is outside Bhanu Partab Singh’s private lease.
