Patna | Dec 06, 2017: The mines and geology department on Tuesday claimed it has buffer stock of sand at its central warehouse in Nisarpura and the government is capable of meeting the sand demand.

Sources said department special secretary-cum-director Asangba Chuba Ao's press statement was issued as news articles have been highlighting the scarcity of sand and how it has hit the real estate sector.

Traders say that although online sale of sand has started on December 1, they are not getting chalans needed to get sand.

Though a vernacular newspaper reported about long queues of trucks at Nisarpura for taking sand, Ao's press statement said the queues were of trucks meant for dumping sand at the warehouse.

Traders also rued the mandatory Aadhaar and PAN detail requirement to buy sand, and claimed illegal mining of sand is still going on. Sand mining in the Patna region has been stopped since July this year.

In October, mining restarted in other parts of the state commenced but was stopped in three districts, Patna, Bhojpur and Saran, as the matter was sub-judice.

On Monday, the high court stayed the state government's new sand sale policy that came into effect from December 1 this year.

(Source: https://www.telegraphindia.com/)