Real Estate Sector Suffers ₹30k Cr Loss In 6 Months, Says Trade Body | Ranchi News

Ranchi: The real estate sector in the state has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 30,000 crores due to crippled sand supply since November last year. Builders and traders on Monday said the halt in supply of sand has not only led to losses in real estate but also adversely affected the livelihood of people who are dependent on allied sectors like material supply and construction labour.
President of Builders’ Association of India (Jharkhand chapter) Rohit Agarwal on Monday said, “No construction site can function without adequate supply of sand as it is the essential material for building anything. The real estate sector has suffered losses to the tune of Rs 30,000cr in the past six months.”
Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FJJCI) president Dheeraj Taneja said, “We have been trying to meet the secretary, mines since June 1, but in vain. So we decided to reach out to the public through media.”
Taneja said that every year during monsoon there is a restriction on lifting of sand from water bodies. “As per National Green Tribunal (NGT) regulations, lifting of sand from water bodies in the state has been banned from June 9 till August. So we demand the state government to allow the movement of sand from neighboring states through authorised sand distributors of the state as the prices have skyrocketed,” he added.
Sand traders, stockists, and distributors said the shortage is creating problems not only for builders, but also the residents who are constructing their personal houses.
Sand traders and FJCCI members Rajesh Ranjan said, “People will not believe if I say that I get emotional calls from customers who say that they aren’t able to complete their roofs due to the scarcity of sand and are forced to live with rains this year.”
One Hywa (a truck) of sand costs Rs 65,000-70,000 at present as against Rs 15,000 earlier, he added.
The state government hasn’t auctioned the sand ghats since November 2021, citing technical evaluation by the Jharkhand State Mineral Development Corporation (JSMDC).
Ranjan said, “I fail to understand what kind of technical evaluation is being done by the JSMDC officials for the past six months. People are paying the price for their inefficiency.”
He added, “If the state government assures us that we can fetch sand from neighbouring states like West Bengal and that there will be no disturbances on road by police or mines and mineral officials, we can get the end user one Hyva of sand for Rs 22,500.”