Kishan Kapoor, the State Industries Minister of Himachal Pradesh, stated that during the past three years, Rs 136.3-crore royalty has been paid by cement plants in Himachal Pradesh to the state exchequer. He said in the past three years three mini-cement plants have availed of the subsidy under central transport subsidy scheme to the tune of Rs 32.5 lakh.
The minister said, "No waste had accumulated during the mining operation," when asked about how much waste had accumulated and what was being done to protect the environment. He further said the environment impact studies had been conducted and guidelines have been issued by the Environment Ministry to ACC Barmana, Ambuja Cement Darlaghat and JP Cement Bhalag.