Sai Cabinet approved amendments to the Chhattisgarh District Mineral Foundation Trust Rules 2015

At the Cabinet Meeting held today, under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Shri Vishnu Deo Sai, in Mantralaya (Mahanadi Bhawan), following important decisions were taken:

1. Cabinet has approved amendments to the Chhattisgarh District Mineral Foundation Trust Rules, 2015 in accordance with the new guidelines issued by the Ministry of Mines, Government of India, and the revised guidelines under Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY)-2024. Under the revised framework, a minimum of 70% of the funds available with the Trust shall be mandatorily utilised for high-priority sectors such as drinking water supply, environmental conservation, pollution control, health, education, agriculture, welfare of women and children, welfare of the elderly and differently-abled persons, as well as skill development and employment, sanitation, housing, and holistic development of animal husbandry. In a major move to ensure effective regulation and transparency in sand mining and transportation, the Cabinet has repealed Chhattisgarh Minor Mineral (Sand Mining and Trade) Rules, 2019 and Chhattisgarh Minor Mineral (Sand Mining and Trade in Scheduled Areas) Rules, 2023.

A new set of rules titled Chhattisgarh Minor Mineral (Sand Mining and Trade) Rules, 2025 has been approved. These rules aim to curb illegal sand mining and transportation through strict measures and ensure that sand is made available to the general public at fair prices. The new rules also mandate strict adherence to environmental and safety standards.

Allotment of sand mines will now be done through electronic auctions, which is expected to bring in greater transparency and lead to increased revenue generation for the state.

3. The Cabinet has approved a proposal from the Department of Commercial Tax (Registration) regarding the determination of market value of agricultural land. As per the approved changes, the existing provision of evaluating rural agricultural plots up to 500 square metres separately will be abolished. Instead, valuation will be carried out uniformly based on hectare rates for the entire landholding.

This move aims to prevent irregularities such as those witnessed in the Bharatmala Project and the Arpa-Bhaisajhar region of Bilaspur. Additionally, the provision of evaluating converted rural land at 2.5 times the value of irrigated land has been scrapped. For villages adjacent to urban limits and for lands situated in designated investment zones, market rates will now be fixed on a per square metre basis.

4. The Cabinet has approved the allotment of 7.96 acres of land to the Chhattisgarh State Cricket Association (CSCS) in Sector-3, Village Parsada, Nava Raipur (Atal Nagar), for establishing a state-of-the-art Cricket Academy.

This modern cricket facility in Nava Raipur will offer international-level infrastructure and training opportunities to nurture the skills and talents of emerging sportspersons from the state.

Chhattisgarh holds immense potential in the field of cricket, with many young players having already achieved national and international recognition. The establishment of this academy is expected to provide a major boost to the aspirations of budding cricketers in the state while elevating Chhattisgarh’s profile in the national and international cricketing arena.