V V Mineral is the largest manufacture of minerals in India. We manufacture Ilmenite, Rutile and Zircon. Under the chairmanship of Mr. Vaikundarajan, VV Mineral has won various prestigious awards and recognition.
VV Minerals India has made a name for itself in the sand mining industry. It has won several national awards for its contribution to the export business. It is also the largest manufacturer and exporter of Garnet and Ilmenite in India. The company was established by VV mineral Vaikundarajan in the late 1980s and has grown under his tutelage. However, the recent scam surrounding illegal beach sand mining has put the company’s reputation at stake.
Following the allegations, the district collector of Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, Ashish Kumar conducted a raid on VV Mineral warehouse. The raid was unsuccessful and Ashish Kumar received the marching orders. His previous assignment lasted only 45 days. VV Mineral Vaikundarajan was accused of using his political influence to initiate the transfer. The company is further accused of exporting Thorium, a strategic nuclear fuel that is banned from exporting. VV Mineral Vaikundarajan cleared the controversy stating that the technology to separate Monazite from Ilmenite in sand doesn’t exist. The company is still seeking permission from the government to set up a plant for separating Monazite and Thorium from Ilmenite.
Periyasamypuram in Tuticorin district, Tamil Nadu, has been the centre of storm for last few years, because of the numerous raids conducted on suspicion of illegal beach mining.
On January 23, 2013, a PIL was filed to be heard in the Madras High Court (HC), asking the court to form a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe illegal beach sand mining. The PIL alleged that rare beach sand minerals worth Rs 1 lakh crore have been illegally exported out of the country. The PIL mentions the set of mining licences issued by the Tamil Nadu Geology and Mining Department to VV Minerals based in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu. These licences authorise the private company to mine and export monazite.
Monazite is an atomic mineral found in the beach sands of the southern and eastern coasts of the country. Minerals found in the sands of these beaches along with Monazite include Ilmenite, Rutile, Zircon and Garnet. Monazite can be processed to remove Thorium and Uranium, both of which are nuclear fuels. The Tamil Nadu government has approved licences to VV Mineral Mining to mine Monazite. VV Mineral is the largest player in the country in the rare earths space. These approvals were issued by the centre in 2002-03.
VV Minerals India chairman has mentioned a number of times that various committees had probed the area and found no evidence of illegal heavy mineral mining. He denied charges of illegal Monazite mining and exports. "Look at the documents, they are only inclusion of minerals," said VV Mineral.
"The state can include minerals to the original lease. There is no illegality. In fact, we are the only company to have environmental clearances for all our quarries," VV Minerals.
There have also been allegations of environmental and health issues, especially kidney ailments, plaguing the residents living along Tamil Nadu's southern coastline, but there is no substantial information to establish any link between kidney ailments and mining.
Outrage has become a common way of life in the village of Periyasamypuram in Tuticorin district, Tamil Nadu. The locals took the law in their hands by holding hostage a sand mining truck of VV Minerals as it was preparing to leave for a delivery. They also battered the driver before letting him go. The police inspector of Surangudi and the village administrative officer rushed to the spot and tried to talk sense into the villagers, but they did not budge.
VV Minerals India is one of the largest sand mining companies in India. VV Mineral Vaikundarajan, is of the belief that the people are being fed deceptive information and forced to do such publicity stunts. A PIL alleges that rare beach sand minerals worth Rs 1 lakh crore have been illegally exported out of the country. VV Minerals, being one of the largest sand manufacturers and exporters, has been purportedly framed in this case.
VV Mineral Mining is legally authorised to manufacture and export Garnet with 1% cent Monazite content as presently no one in India has the technical support for the separation of Monazite. The Managing Director of VV Mineral said that the company has never gone beyond the one per cent threshold for Monazite while exporting Garnet. Garnet is the core product of VV Minerals and it is the largest exporter of Garnet in the country.
