Jaipur, May 21 -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday praised the Rajasthan government's crackdown on illegal sand mining in the National Chambal Sanctuary, calling the state's emerging enforcement model a potential "role model" for the country - but warned affidavits and plans alone would not suffice and demanded visible results on the ground. A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta heard the matter. Appearing for the state of Rajasthan, additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati and additional advocate general Shiv Mangal Sharma made detailed submissions. During the hearing, the Supreme Court also extensively questioned senior state officers. Officers present included the additional chief secretary (home department), additional chief secretary (forest & environment department), additional chief secretary (mines & petroleum department), principal secretary (transport department), senior police officers, PCCF and the chief wildlife warden, along with other concerned officials. Additional Advocate General Shiv Mangal Sharma said the state informed the Supreme Court that immediately after the order dated May 14, the chief secretary of Rajasthan personally convened several high-level meetings and established coordination among all departments. Under the chief secretary's directions, continuous coordination meetings were held between the home, forest, mining, transport, finance and law departments, resulting in extensive action at the ground level. The state told the court that district-level task forces had already been constituted to prevent illegal mining in the Chambal Sanctuary area, and joint patrolling teams comprising officials from the police, forest, mining, transport and revenue departments had been deployed. "Special enforcement drives are being carried out in the districts of Dholpur, Karauli, Sawai Madhopur, Kota and Bundi," said Sharma. In its affidavit, the forest department stated that 40 sensitive and illegal mining-affected locations within the National Chambal Sanctuary had been identified, where AI-based high-resolution CCTV surveillance systems are being installed. These CCTV cameras are to be connected to control rooms and command centres for real-time monitoring. The Rajasthan government also told the court that the process of installing GPS systems in tractors, dumpers, excavators and other vehicles used in illegal mining activities had commenced. The mining department informed the Supreme Court that GPS installation work was ongoing in the districts of Dholpur, Karauli, Sawai Madhopur, Bundi and Kota and would be completed by July 31, 2026. The transport department said that, as a pilot project in Dholpur district, GPS systems had been made mandatory for all mining vehicles and seizure proceedings would be initiated against vehicles violating the directions. The home department, in its affidavit, stated that continuous FIRs were being registered in cases of illegal mining and transportation, arrests were being made and a large number of vehicles had been seized. The police department has also activated a surveillance mechanism through dedicated command centres. The finance department informed the Supreme Court that the state government had sanctioned approximately Rs.65.47 crore for strengthening technological surveillance systems aimed at curbing illegal mining. Financial sanctions had also been granted for strengthening CCTV networks, control rooms, vehicles and enforcement infrastructure. During the hearing, the Supreme Court observed that increasing the strength of forest guards, rangers and other field staff was essential for effective protection of forests and wildlife. The court directed the state government to expedite recruitment for vacant posts related to forest protection. While expressing satisfaction over the detailed compliance reports submitted by the state government, the court exempted the officers from personal appearance on future hearing dates....