Hasdeo Sand Mining Tender Cancelled, Court Cites Lack of Final Approval Report

The Chhattisgarh High Court has cancelled the tender issued for a proposed sand mining project in the Hasdeo River located in Janjgir-Champa district of Chhattisgarh. The decision came after a petition was filed by the sarpanch of Gram Panchayat Hathnewra, who challenged the legality of the tender process. The court ruled that sand mining auctions cannot be conducted without a final and officially approved District Survey Report (DSR). According to the petition, the administration had initiated the sand mining tender process using a five-year-old District Survey Report whose validity had already expired. Despite the outdated report, authorities released the tender on March 30 and even finalized the successful bidder. The Gram Panchayat argued that no valid and approved new DSR was available in the district, making the entire tender process illegal and against mining regulations. The case was heard by a division bench consisting of Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal. During the hearing, the court observed that merely uploading a draft survey report on a website does not make it legally valid. The bench stated that proper procedure requires inviting public objections and suggestions on the report, followed by approval from the district collector. Only after completing these formalities can the report be treated as a final District Survey Report. The state government defended its actions by informing the court that a new DSR for 2025 had been prepared and uploaded online on November 27, 2025. Government lawyers argued that the tender process was almost complete and cancelling it would lead to financial losses and affect state revenue. However, after examining all arguments, the High Court concluded that the report cited by the government was only a draft version and had not received final approval. As a result, the court declared the tender process invalid and officially cancelled it. At the same time, the court granted liberty to the state government to prepare a fresh and legally approved District Survey Report according to established rules and regulations. After completing the required legal process, authorities may issue a new tender for sand mining in the Hasdeo River area.