CHANDIGARH, Nov. 14 -- In a crackdown on illegal mining, the Punjab mines and geology department has seized a Poclain machine and a tipper allegedly being used for unauthorised mining in Rasulpur village of Ludhiana district.

Mines and geology minister Barinder Kumar Goyal said a team of the department intercepted the machinery during a patrol on Friday morning and subsequently handed it over to the police. An FIR has been registered at the Ladhowal police station under relevant legal provisions.

Goyal said the department had intensified enforcement measures, including regular raids, patrolling and surveillance, to curb illegal mining and protect the state's natural resources.

The minister said that those involved in illegal mining wou...