Mangaluru: The Mangaluru Taluk Panchayat members have alleged that the officials attached to Mines and Geology department are turning a blind eye towards illegal sand mining and are cracking the whip on poor people who are engaged in extracting sand from their property.
Taluk Panchayat members Sunil and Samad took officials of mines and geology to task during the 17th general meeting of Mangaluru Taluk Panchayat, at Nethravathi auditorium in Zilla Panchayat building on Wednesday, August 7.
Citing an example of how a woman who dredged her own land and extracted sand was put to inconvenience by the officials, Sunil said that the sand extracted by the poor woman was confiscated by the officials. He said that the officials even threatened those who questioned their move.
Another member Samad alleged that officials are discriminating while taking action against the people who take up sand mining. “They take no action if a person is from rich background. They fret and fume and initiate stern action against the poor. While issuing permission for sand mining too, officials violate the guidelines and there are instances where permission was granted for three persons from the same family,” he said.
Responding to it, Dr Sushma of Mines and Geology department clarified that officials are working as per the law and as per the direction of the higher officials. “If there is any loopholes in the law, it should be rectified by the people concerned,” she said.
Taluk Panchayat President Mohammed Monu asked the officials of Mines and Geology to furnish all details pertaining to seized sand, penalty collection and total number of permits issued for sand mining.
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