SC summons Raj, MP officials over illegal sand mining

Jaipur: Taking serious note of rampant illegal sand mining inside the National Chambal Sanctuary, the Supreme Court on Thursday summoned senior Rajasthan govt officials to appear personally before it and explain the steps being taken to curb the menace threatening the fragile river ecosystem, endangered wildlife habitat and nearby public infrastructure.

A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and Vijay Bishnoi directed Rajasthan’s additional chief secretary (home) and principal secretaries of the departments of mining, finance, forest, environment, and transport & road safety, to remain present before court on May 19, the next date of hearing, along with individual compliance affidavits.

The apex court also directed principal secretary, transport and road safety department of Madhya Pradesh to remain present before the court with a detailed affidavit disclosing enforcement measures undertaken to identify and prevent operation of unregistered and unidentified vehicles allegedly involved in illegal mining and transportation activities.

The bench specifically asked Rajasthan authorities to explain how they intend to comply with previous orders passed by the court on April 2 and April 17 this year, besides implementing recommendations made by the Central Empowered Committee (CEC). The concerned officers were directed to assist the court regarding timelines within which the directions would be implemented on the ground.

The apex court also impleaded the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) as a party in the proceedings and directed it to file a detailed affidavit regarding measures taken or proposed to protect the structural integrity and security of a bridge allegedly affected by continuous illegal mining activities in and around the sanctuary.

The bench also sought clarification from NHAI on why CCTV surveillance and monitoring systems should not be installed on and around the bridge for real-time tracking of illegal mining and transportation activities. The court directed its registry to immediately communicate the order, along with the earlier order dated April 17 to the standing counsel representing NHAI.

The proceedings arise out of a suo motu petition registered by the Supreme Court after taking cognisance of media reports highlighting large-scale illegal sand mining operations in and around the sanctuary spread across Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The sanctuary is considered one of India’s most ecologically sensitive riverine ecosystems and among the last surviving habitats of the critically endangered gharial.

On April 17, the Supreme Court laid down a stringent legal and operational framework to tackle organised illegal mining in the sanctuary area and directed State Pollution Control Boards to recover environmental compensation from violators for ecological restoration and rehabilitation of damaged river ecosystems.

In its interim report submitted before the court earlier, the CEC observed that illegal mining activities were allegedly being carried out openly with the use of JCB machines, tractors, dumpers and heavy transport vehicles directly operating on river sand banks across all three states. The committee warned that unchecked mining was causing severe ecological degradation and posing a direct threat to aquatic biodiversity and nesting habitats.