NGT seeks fresh replies against plea on ‘excess’ mining of sand

Cuttack: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the state authorities to file fresh affidavits giving specific replies to a petition alleging unchecked extraction of sand by a lessee from the Kusei riverbed at Deogaon in Keonjhar district.The NGT’s east zone bench in Kolkata issued the direction while expressing dissatisfaction over the replies filed by the State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) and Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) in response to the PIL filed by Tapas Kumar Bal, a local resident, on Apr 30. Bal alleged extraction of sand beyond the permitted area, which intersects Jajpur and Keonjhar. The sand quarry is located near Jajpur. He alleged the sand is being illegally mined in Jajpur and transported to Keonjhar. The bench of Justice B Amit Sthalekar (judicial member) and Dr Arun Kumar Verma (expert member) said the affidavits filed by SEIAA and OSPCB were silent about the allegations.“In fact, the affidavits are in an essay form,” the bench observed while directing the SEIAA, OSPCB and the deputy director of mines to file para-wise counter-affidavits by May 31, the date fixed for the next hearing on the matter. The bench allowed time till then to the lessee to file a reply. The bench took note of the petitioner’s additional affidavit which pointed out that the calculation of 4,869 cubic metres of illegally extracted sand, compared to the total mining of 7,365 cubic metres arrived at by the inspection committee, is too low.The additional affidavit filed through advocate Sankar Prasad Pani claimed the inventory of vehicles indicates that at least 960 truckloads of sand was excavated and transported from Sep 8 to Oct 8, 2023.

File report on pollution load in air, NGT tells HSPCB

NGT directs HSPCB to submit Mahendergarh's carrying capacity report by Aug first week, addressing environmental concerns related to stone crushers. The report will shed light on pollution issues for better sustainability practices in the region.

ASI tries to stop sand mafia tractor in MP, mowed down

In MP's Shahdol, ASI Bagri was killed by sand mafia. The region is notorious for illegal sand mining. Tractor driver and accomplice arrested. Bagri, father of two, worked at Beohari police station.

Madhya Pradesh: Sand mafia mows down ASI under tractor in Shahdol

Sand mafia kills ASI Mahendra Bagri in Shahdol while enforcing an arrest warrant. The driver, Raj Rawat, ran over him at Badoli village. SP Shahdol offers Rs 30,000 reward. Second such incident in six months in the district.