With a ban on sand mining in the state till August – as ordered by National Green Tribunal (NGT) – people here are using stone dust as its alternative for construction purpose.
Bokaro Steel plant (BSL) and the Research and Development Centres for Iron and Steel (RDCIS) are working to explore possibilities of developing slag sand generated during steel production as another substitute for sand.
Bokaro Crushers Association spokesperson Manoj Kumar said, “Following a ban on sand mining and lifting, the sale of stone dust has increased. The demand for it has grown as it is cheaper than sand. The northeastern states are already using stone dust for their construction.”
An officer of the RDCIS wing said, “Along the lines of JSW Steel, the BSL management is also exploring to install steel-slag sand plant to produce steel slag as a substitute for sand. This will boost construction work and save cost.”
JSW Steel commissioned a 0.30 million tonne steel-slag sand plant at Vijayanagar Works in Karnataka in June. The plant will mitigate the slag disposal problem and provide a low-cost and eco-friendly sand for construction works.
The BSL management, in association with RDCIS, is working to develop this sustainable process for converting steel-making slag into sand for civil construction.