Chief Minister Raman Singh on Wednesday launched Minerals' Online portal for better management of mines and minerals in the State.
He also congratulated the officials of Mineral Resources' Department for smoothening the entire process and added that there was a need for better management of mines and minerals' resources which would be facilitated by the launch of Online portal.
There are immense minerals in large parts of the State. It will help in E-Transit pass, filing of applications, payment of taxes and filing of Online returns, he said. The Chief Minister said the contributions of minerals' resources in the rapid development cannot be under-estimated.
They play a vital role in socio-economic progress of Chhattisgarh. The economic health had improved because of royalty on minerals, minerals' fund and district minerals' fund. The revenue in 2003 was merely Rs 400 crore and in 2017 it had risen to Rs 4000 crore, he said.
The State has plans to expand the railway network by about 1300 kilometres which can be helped by Minerals' Fund. Roads are also being laid at a rapid pace in which these funds are being utilized, Singh said. Master plan had been implemented to make batter utilization of mineral resources for the next 25 years. About Rs 3600 crore will be spent on development projects over the next three years from the District Minerals' Trust Fund, he said. Singh said that mineral resources are our major strength and these should be utilized for the betterment of the State. The Chief Minister called upon to utilize Online facility and MobileApp for smooth functioning of the process. Paper work will be drastically reduced. Real time movement of vehicles at the checkposts and wavebridge can be gauged by sitting at headquarter, he said. GPS, mobiles and high-tech I.T. equipments will be provided to the regional investigating officers, Singh said. Chhattisgarh State Minerals Development Corporation Chairperson Shivratan Sharma also addressed the gathering.
Chief Secretary Vivek Dhand said that Online portal is on the lines of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's '' Digital India' Project. It is a step in the direction of 'Ease of Doing Business'. Mineral Resources Department Secretary Subodh Kumar Singh gave a power point presentation on Online Minerals Portal.