About 100 trucks of sand is shifted from Manair daily
The government had issued licences to some of those in possession of patta lands to mine sand in their lands which led to the real trouble of illegal mining.
Karimnagar: Despite registering cases and seizure of vehicles, illegal transportation of sand goes unhindered in various parts of Karimnagar district, thanks to the nexus between some public representatives and smugglers.
On an average, at least one hundred trucks of sand is being transported from Karimnagar district to Hyderabad everyday. The illegal mining is rampant in Karimnagar, Boinapalli, Sultanabad, Manakonddur, Sircilla, Vemulawada, Bejjanki, Timmapur, Jagtial and Huzurabad mandals, where there are many sand reaches near rivulets.
River Manair passes through many places in the district. Hundreds of sand trenches can be noticed along the path of the river. The abundant availability of sand in these water bodies is a boon to smugglers, who are interested in easy money.
In order to hoodwink the officials, offenders dump the sand on the outskirts of the city in the day after smuggling it from river Manair and other rivulets. Later, they transport it to Hyderabad in the nights and sell it for higher rates, in view of the heavy demand for it in the capital.
Sand mafia, it is learnt, bribe every department that is concerned with rivers, sand and transportation to ensure hassle-free shifting of the mineral to other places.
It is learnt that officials of revenue, police, transportation departments and a some public reporesentatives have their own share of kickbacks from smugglers for not raising their voice against the menace.
Check posts have been put up at many places in Karimnagar district to curb illegal transportation of sand but there is no proper vigilance at these places enabling smugglers carry on the activity unhindered. “We can crack down on smugglers by forming task force teams and intensifying vigilance,” said a senior revenue official.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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