Rajasthan’s New M-sand Policy-2020

The Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, has released the new M-Sand Policy of Rajasthan in light with the government’s commitment to meet the quantity of sand which is needed for construction work.

 M-Sand Policy

• The M-sand policy has been launched with the aim of reducing the dependency on the traditional sand from rivers.
• Through this policy, the use and production of manufactured sand or M-sand in the state will be encouraged.
• With this policy, problem of waste generated from the mines in the mining areas of Rajasthan will also be solved.
• This will also create huge employment opportunities at the local level.
• The policy designated the M-sand units the status of an industry.

What was the need of this policy?

In the state of Rajasthan, the availability of sand is not as per the requirement of construction works. There is a demand of around 70 million tonnes of river sand for various construction work. But, only 20 M-sand units are operating in the state. These 20 units produces 20,000 tonnes of M-sand every day.  Now, this new M-sand policy will be promoting it as a long-term alternative to gravel and help in setting up of new mining units.

What is M-Sand?

The policy defines the M-Sand as the manufactured sand produced by crushing the minerals. The M-sand meet the standards of ISO code 383: 2016. The sand is derived from the minerals which are locally available such as granite, silica, basalt, sandstone and quartile. The sand is produced by crushing the minerals into stones of size 150 microns. The crushed material is then segregated and used in differently based on the size. In order to reduce the impurities, the sand is washed after crushing it to make it more durable and suitable for construction process.

Month: Current Affairs - January, 2021