Illegal mining of gems 'spreading' in K-P, FATA despite govt ban

However, Provincial Minister for Minerals Development Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli denies such reports

ISLAMABAD: Despite an official ban on mining of precious gems and semi-precious stones, illegal mining is not only rampant in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa but also in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), claimed a director of Pakistan Gems and Jewellery Development Company (PGJDC) on Friday.

“Emerald and precious pink topaz are illegally mined in Swat and Mardan and traded in the province,” Atif Rashid Khawaja told The Express Tribune.

Besides, quarts, epidote corundum, smoky quartz from Dir, Kohistan, Mansehra and Swat are also being illegally extracted and sold by organised gangs, revealed Khawaja, who is also a former chairman of the All Pakistan Commercial Exporters Association of Precious and Semi-Precious Stones.



Khawaja accused the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led K-P government of its failure to check such illicit business, saying “the provincial government has miserably failed to take measures to control this illegal excavation, which is repeatedly causing a loss of billions of rupees to the provincial exchequer since long”.

According to official sources, Swat has reserves of 70 million carats of emerald; Mardan is rich with the reserves of nine million carats of pink topaz while Kohistan has 10 million carats reserves of peridot.

Meanwhile, Provincial Minister for Minerals Development Anisa Zeb Tahirkheli denied reports of widespread illegal mining in the province.

She, however, admitted the pitiable infrastructure of her department had been causing numerous difficulties in streamlining the affairs.



Tahirkheli told The Express Tribune that she had received reports about illegal mining of emerald in a few houses in Swat, which proved incorrect after an investigation.

“Such illegal mining is not possible without the collision of subordinate officials of the department,” she said.

“For the first time in the province, Mineral Development Act 2016, initiated by the mineral development department, is soon going to be enacted in the province,” said the provincial minister.

Draft of the law to have proper infrastructure for the mineral development department was being drafted, she claimed, adding that illegal mining will become a punishable offence after the passage of the law by the provincial assembly.

While referring to the means of illegal excavation, Tahirkheli said, “The mining has been suspended in the K-P due to poor infrastructure and mining and issuance of fresh licences are banned in the province.”

She went on to say, "The department has been confronted with various administrative weaknesses and challenges for the several years. A large number of vacancies of surveyors, engineers and other experts are lying vacant since many months due to some [victorian] rules and regulation,” the minister upheld.



According to the rules, the department has to fill the vacancies from within the department through promotion, she explained, adding that the implementation of such rules was not possible because of many legal and administrative issues.

The department has not been successful to find a suitable person for the post of director general mines and minerals, which has been lying vacant since many months.

The previous DG, Dr Liaqat Ali, had been arrested by the provincial Ehtesab Commission for financial irregularities last year.

His arrest and interrogation provided enough evidence to the accountability body, which subsequently rounded up the then provincial minister for mineral development Ziaullah Afridi for his alleged violation of mines allotment rules for financial advantage.

According to official sources, few other officials of the department have also been held for collaborating with Afridi.



Tahirkheli recently moved a summary for approval by K-P Chief Minister Pervez Khattak for recruiting the required workforce to run the department at the earliest.

“The Ehtesab Commission officials took the relevant record of the department with them after the arrest of Dr Ali and Afridi. The absence of the record is hindering our official business since last year,” the minister said.