With mining on halt, construction material becomes dearer

Shortage of labour, fall in demand for construction have hit the business

As mining has stopped amid the coronavirus lockdown, construction business is suffering due to inflated prices of construction material and shortage of labour.

Nowadays, sand from Haryana is being supplied in most parts of Punjab. (Representative Image /HT)

Those in the construction business say good quality sand from Anandpur Sahib and Pathankot is difficult to come by these days.

“Retailers were selling Anandpur sand for Rs 23-25 per cubic foot before the lockdown was imposed but now the prices have inflated to Rs 31-33. Consumers will have to shell Rs 6,000-8000 more per truckload (with a capacity of 1000 cubic feet),” says a businessman.

Nowadays, sand from Haryana is being supplied in most parts of Punjab. Supply from Himachal, too, has dried up.

Anandpur Sahib sub-divisional magistrate Kanu Garg said approved sites were not permitted to start sand mining.

Ropar district mining officer Damanpreet Singh says, “Five sites have been approved in Ropar since the lockdown. They are not operational. The supply of sand has been stopped but it is expected that a decision on the front will be taken soon.”

“We have allowed some crushers to start operation but only to complete their pending work. The matter will be discussed with the Ropar deputy commissioner,” he said.

Nabha-based sand wholesaler Gurmeet Singh says, “There has been a rise in the price of the sand as mining license holders are charging a huge sum at places where mining activity has been allowed.”

Cement companies have also raised their prices. “Earlier, cement companies were selling a 50kg cement bag for Rs 360 but now they are being sold for Rs 380-400 in different parts of Patiala,” says a buisenessman.

Iron bar prices have also gone up from Rs 43/kg to Rs 46/kg, as reported in retail markets. Brick prices have risen from Rs 5,000 to 5,700 per 1,000 units.

CUSTOMERS POSTPONE CONSTRUCTION 

A Nabha-based retailer of building material Bachan Singh says, “Being granted permission to open outlets has no meaning as customers are postponing construction due to the inflated prices.”

“We get dozens of query calls every day but customers are not placing orders. Labouers are also unemployed as the price hike has caused a fall in demand for construction,” he said.

The sales manager of a cement company said manufacturing plants were not running at full capacities and supplies remained obstructed due to contrasting stances of deputy commissioners in different districts.