Kurnool: Rajya Sabha Member V. Vijaya Sai Reddy on Tuesday urged the Central government to take immediate steps to curb indiscriminate sand mining in Andhra Pradesh. Making a special mention in Rajya Sabha, Mr Vijaya Sai Reddy said that illegal sand mining is prevalent in the districts of Guntur, Krishna, Srikakulam and East Godavari where about 2,000 trucks of sand is transported to Hyderabad every day. “It is causing grave environmental, health and security threats,” he said.
Further, he said that the Hyderabad High Court has contended that revenue authorities have turned a blind eye in spite of repeated complaints regarding illegal mining of sand on the banks of river Handri. “Indiscriminate extraction of sand from floodplains raises ecological, economic and social concerns. It destroys the flora and fauna along the river bed and decreased fertility of land”, Mr Vijaya Sai Reddy said. He was apprehensive that unless steps were taken, the $157 billion construction sector was expected to spike the demand for sand which would be detrimental to the environment.
