“J&K Mining Scam: Fake Reports Mislead MLA Dr. Veeri in Assembly, ₹3000 Crore Loss Concealed, NGT Fines Ignored – What Can a Common Man Expect?

Bilal Bhat

Srinagar, March 9, 2025 –A major scandal has surfaced in Jammu and Kashmir after revelations that the administration misled the Legislative Assembly with fabricated mining revenue figures, concealing massive financial and environmental losses. MLA Dr. Syed Bashir Ahmad Veeri was presented with official documents that claimed ₹395 crore in revenue from riverbed mining, but these figures failed to disclose the staggering ₹3000 crore loss incurred due to unchecked illegal mining operations. Even more damning, the reports omitted multiple fines imposed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on the J&K administration for failing to regulate the mining sector.

If the government is misleading its own elected representatives, how can an ordinary citizen ever hope to get truthful information under RTI? The figures, masked behind bureaucratic jargon, tell a story of corruption, misgovernance, and blatant disregard for accountability.

Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat, a well-known RTI activist, exposed these glaring discrepancies, questioning the administration’s intent. “The government has shown ₹395 crore as revenue, but they have not disclosed the massive loss incurred due to illegal mining and environmental destruction. Worse, they have deliberately hidden the fact that the NGT has fined the J&K administration multiple times for failing to regulate mining,” he said.

The manipulation of data does not end with financial misreporting. Official documents conveniently omitted the fines imposed by the NGT, including a ₹7 crore penalty in 2022 for illegal mining in Rajouri, which was later stayed by the Supreme Court in December 2022. Another significant penalty—₹3 crore—was slapped on the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) for allowing unchecked waste dumping into water bodies like Doodh Ganga. These violations continue, but the government prefers silence over corrective action.

Dr. Veeri, who raised this issue in the Assembly, was left unsatisfied with the vague and evasive responses. Calling for a more detailed discussion under Rule 55(i), he demanded that the actual figures be placed on record and those responsible for these misstatements be held accountable.

“If MLAs are being fed fabricated numbers in official documents, how can we expect transparency for the common man? How can the administration be trusted when they fail to acknowledge the environmental and economic damage?” Dr. Veeri asked.

The NGT’s repeated interventions in J&K’s illegal mining crisis highlight the extent of the problem. In December 2024, the tribunal issued notices to senior officials for illegal mining in Pulwama’s Sasara stream, where heavy machinery was being used despite strict environmental prohibitions.

Similarly, in Budgam’s Sukhnag River, the NGT ordered immediate halts to illegal mining operations after reckless excavation disrupted irrigation channels, drinking water supply, and trout fisheries. From 2020 to 2024, the government issued 163 short-term mining permits, but there has been little oversight on their implementation, raising questions about who truly benefits from these mining activities.

The demand for a CBI inquiry is growing stronger, with activists calling for a full investigation into the concealed financial losses and the government’s failure to act on NGT’s findings.

“This is not just a financial scam—it’s an environmental disaster. The rivers of J&K are being exploited by a well-connected mafia while officials either look away or actively mislead elected representatives. If ₹3000 crore can disappear from the records without accountability, imagine the scale of corruption at play,” said Dr. Muzaffar.

Public frustration has also spilled over onto social media, where Dr. Veeri’s Facebook post on the issue received strong reactions from activists.

“In a blatant violation of the RTI Act 2005, officers in key positions are providing misleading, false, and fabricated information to the public. To curb this malpractice, a penalty of ₹50,000 should be imposed on any officer found guilty of misleading an information seeker,” wrote Mohammad Altaf Mir.

Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat responded: “There is already a provision of penalty in the law itself, i.e., ₹25,000 maximum, but this should be enhanced to ₹50,000.”

Another user summed up public sentiment, writing: “Imagine, if this is the level of dishonesty in official records presented before MLAs, how can a common citizen expect to get real information under RTI?”

The anger on the ground is not just about manipulated reports—it is about the loot of Kashmir’s natural resources while those in power turn a blind eye.

The administration now finds itself under immense pressure to explain why key financial data was kept hidden and why it continues to shield mining mafias instead of holding them accountable. The question remains: Will the government take action, or will this issue be buried like the countless rivers being plundered under its watch?