Dehradun, March 14 -- The state government on Friday informed the assembly that authorities recovered proceeds amounting to Rs.121.20 crore in 3,805 illegal mining cases in the last financial year up to January 2026 in the current financial year. In reply to a question by Congress MLA from Jhabrera, Virendra Jati, who alleged that large-scale illegal mining operations across the state had caused serious damage to roads, rivers, bridges, embankments and arable land, and upset the ecological balance in the state. "Mining operations are being carried out in rivers, tributaries, and other mining areas in various districts of the state according to established rules and procedures. We are not aware of any instances of serious damage to roads, bridges, embankments, agricultural land, rivers, and the environmental balance," the government's reply stated. "To date, a total of 208 mining leases have been approved, covering an area of 4,366.376 hectares," The government said Rs.472.32 crore in revenue from mining was generated in 2022-23, Rs.645.46 crore in 2023-24, and Rs.1,040.57 crore in 2024-25. The state government has reiterated that transparency in the mining has led to a spike in the revenue. In November 2025, the state government stated that the state received a total incentive of Rs.200 crore from the central government for carrying out reforms in the mining sector. According to officials, the union ministry of mines granted Rs.100 crore to the state under the Special Assistance Scheme for Capital Investment (SASCI) for 2025-26 for implementing reforms in minor minerals. htc...