Potash reserve found 450 metres below surface in 2 Punjab districts, further exploration on: minister

Goyal said preliminary surveys indicated adjacent districts could besides person important reserves, prompting continued exploration.

“India imports 50 lakh (5 million) tonnes of potash annually, chiefly utilized successful fertilisers and industries. With the recently identified reserves successful Muktsar Sahib and Fazilka districts, Punjab has go the archetypal authorities successful the state to person important potash deposits,” said Goyal, who visited Sherewala and Shergarh villages to inspect the potash reserves sites.

Punjab Mining Department Director Abhijit Kaplish said, “The Geological Survey of India, a technological assemblage which conducts surveys, had for the archetypal clip successful 1980 conducted surveys of respective boreholes astatine antithetic locations successful Punjab. From 2017 onwards, however, regular surveys were being conducted. The find of reserves is portion of their ongoing surveys. The Kabarwala artifact has travel to the auctioning stage, which the Centre volition conduct.”

‘No onshore acquisition required’

Goyal, however, clarified that onshore acquisition would not beryllium required for the potash extraction. Potash volition beryllium extracted utilizing an precocious drilling strategy with zero interaction connected onshore ownership. Additionally, the authorities is conducting a thorough biology and societal interaction appraisal earlier starting operations,” helium said, addressing nationalist interest implicit onshore acquisition for potash mining.

Economic boost, employment generation

“The potash mining successful Punjab volition make caller employment opportunities and thrust determination economical development,” The curate said.

Goyal emphasised, “This inaugural aligns with AAP nationalist convenor Arvind Kejriwal’s imaginativeness of making Punjab economically self-reliant done mining. Although the auctioning rights remainder with the cardinal government, the royalty volition payment Punjab. The authorities authorities has approved mining successful the Kabarwala block. Once the cardinal authorities completes the auctioning process, extraction volition commence.”

Revenue generation

In 2024, Punjab earned Rs 288 crore from soil and gravel mining, Goyal said, adding, “As galore arsenic 104 caller mining sites volition beryllium operational soon. Moreover, 27 locations on rivers successful Punjab person been identified for soil mining to boost the state’s revenue.”

MLA Narinder Pal Singh Sawna (Fazilka), MLA Amandeep Singh Goldy Musafir (Balluana), MLA Jagdeep Goldy Kamboj (Jalalabad), Director of Mining Abhijeet Kaplish, Geological Survey of India Director Soyam Ranjan Mahapatra, Deputy Commissioner Amarpreet Kaur Sandhu, SSP Varinder Singh Brar, Executive Engineer Jagsir Singh and Supervising Engineer Rajan Dhingra accompanied Goyal to the property conference.

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