Unchecked sand mining, damaged bridge forcing 30-km detour: Residents of 200 Punjab villages have no relief in sight as authorities grapple with fund crunch

As residents person reported, the span was opened for postulation successful 2002 and has witnessed amerciable soil mining activities since 2006. Crushers operating successful the country ran each nighttime and this overexploitation of the riverbed for soil mining damaged the bridge’s pillars which were further compromised by the floods successful 2023.

“The mining cognition not lone disrupted our peace—requiring constabulary involution each clip amerciable activities were reported—but it besides caused important harm to our bridge. One of the bridge’s piers has go tilted, starring to its closure for each postulation but two-wheelers. This harm occurred owed to excessive digging adjacent the bridge. We person raised reddish flags aggregate times astir this issue, but unfortunately, thing has been done to code it,” said Surinder Kumar Saini, a shopkeeper successful Bhallan colony adjacent the bridge.

A sojourn to the country adjacent the damaged span revealed trails near by dense vehicles, imaginable quarrying sand, connected the furniture of the river, “We perceive noises of dense machinery each night. If mining is not taking spot past however travel these machines are working. We person complained galore times. I person retired from the police. I cognize however the full strategy works,” said Bachhittar Singh, a nonmigratory of Tarakh Majari village.

The Public Works Department (PWD) flagged concerns astir mining activities adjacent the span and provided an estimation of Rs 17 crore for its repair to the Punjab Mandi Board, which is liable for the operation and repair of agrarian roads and bridges. However, the Mandi Board is presently facing a currency crunch. “We person submitted the estimation to the Mandi Board. As soon arsenic the funds are released, we volition proceed with the repairs,” said a PWD official.

The country is portion of the Anandpur Sahib constituency, represented by AAP MP and spokesperson Malvinder Kang. He said, “The span is important and its repair a large request from section residents. We are moving to get it repaired. This falls wrong the Assembly conception of Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains (Anandpur Sahib), who is besides advocating for its repair. We person raised this contented with the government. There is presently a backing shortage with the Mandi Board, arsenic the Centre has not released the state’s Rural Development Fund, amounting to Rs 6,767 crore.”

He stated that the span was damaged successful past year’s floods owed to soil mining during the erstwhile Congress government’s regime. Harjot Bains was unavailable for comments.

From Ropar to Hoshiarpur via HP: 30-km detour arsenic amerciable mining damages bridge

CBCP survey and recommendations

In April this year, The Indian Express reported the plight of villages. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) took suo motu announcement of the study and directed the territory medication of Ropar and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to behaviour a survey and taxable a report. A CPCB squad that visited the damaged span has not ruled retired the harm caused to the span owed to amerciable mining.

The study submitted to the NGT successful August stated that though nary mining enactment was observed wrong 1,000 metres of the bridge, and nary heavy craters were recovered connected the riverbed oregon its banks during the tract visit, a study from the Department of Drainage, Mining, and Geology successful Anandpur Sahib revealed that 8 FIRs were filed for amerciable mining betwixt 2015 and 2020. It said these incidents occurred wrong 1,000 metres upstream and downstream of the bridge.

“Additionally, 11 tippers and six excavators were confiscated successful transportation with these FIRs. No information was provided to the CPCB squad with regards to amerciable mining for the play of 2021-2024. Therefore, the anticipation of amerciable mining activities successful the past occurring adjacent the span whitethorn not beryllium ruled out,” the study stated.

During the tract inspection, the associated squad noted that important erosion had occurred astir 4 of the 14 pillars supporting the bridge. They besides observed that h2o flows done lone 4 of the pillars, portion the others stay intact. This concern increases the hazard of harm to the bridge, according to the report.

During the visit, the squad observed that the joints connected the roadworthy slabs supra pillars P7, P6, and P8 had widened, and cracks were contiguous connected the apical slabs of the bridge. The squad suggested that the Geology and Mining Department whitethorn rigorously enforce the Enforcement and Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining (EMGSM), 2020. This includes ensuring that soil and gravel extraction is prohibited wrong 1000 metres of large bridges and highways connected some sides. All mining sites beyond 1,000 metres of the span nether reference, if any, whitethorn besides beryllium inspected to verify compliance with these guidelines.

Additionally, the study said that strict monitoring whitethorn beryllium conducted by the police, forest, and proscription departments. Adequate cheque posts should beryllium established crossed the district, the cognition hours of quarries and depots should beryllium constricted to 7 americium to 6 pm, and the parking of sand-transporting vehicles wrong quarry oregon depot sites during nighttime oregon unusual hours whitethorn beryllium restricted, it said.

The study recommended that the section medication behaviour a survey connected the interaction of mining activities connected the surrounding area’s hydro-geological conditions. The information collected from this survey tin beryllium compared with baseline information to measure the effects connected groundwater levels.

Water array going down, accidental residents

Residents of adjacent villages reported that the underground h2o levels successful their country person importantly decreased. “Our country utilized to person the champion h2o supply; we could entree it astatine 20 feet. Now, it has dropped to 120 feet. All our pump sets person failed, and we person had to deepen them,” said Saini.

He recalled however the archetypal crusher was acceptable up astatine the Swan stream successful the Algran colony successful 2008. “Ever since, these 16 years person been a nightmare. Our daughters bash not consciousness safe. Every night, we spot vehicles of informants parked connected our roadsides to extremity disconnected the workers astatine the mining sites if immoderate constabulary enactment comes to raid the spot. We person been seeing that these crushers support changing hands. The operations get patronage from the politicians successful power.”
Mining contractors regularisation deficiency of due policy.

A mining contractor, speaking anonymously, stated that a crusher was acceptable up for Rs 20 crore but the concern is nary longer profitable. “Only 5 to 7 per cent of crushers are operational. The portion present lone has good soil disposable successful Punjab, portion coarse soil is being sourced from neighbouring states similar Himachal Pradesh. Those inactive operating are doing truthful with the enactment of section leaders. There are besides issues regarding biology clearance. To date, the authorities has lone auctioned 40 quarries.”

He stated that coarse sand, obtained from crushed stones, is presently disposable to extremity users astatine a terms ranging from Rs 32 to Rs 40 per cubic foot. This starkly contrasts the committedness made by the AAP government, which pledged to supply soil astatine a complaint of Rs 5.50 per cubic foot. However, section residents expressed their frustration, noting that the soil is really being sold astatine Rs 32 to Rs 40 per cubic foot.

Gurpreet Singh, a nonmigratory of Kasumbri colony successful Fatehgarh Sahib, said, “I person ne'er purchased soil for little than Rs 32 per cubic foot. It has ne'er touched Rs 30 even,” helium said.

A authorities official, speaking connected the information of anonymity, stated that determination is nary contented with soil proviso successful the state. “There is nary shortage; it is readily available. The terms of Rs 5.50 refers to the worldly itself and does not see proscription oregon labour costs. People tin bargain it for Rs 5.50 per cubic ft astatine the pit head.”

Sand mining, a governmental blistery murphy successful Punjab

The soil mining business, estimated to beryllium worthy Rs 5,000 crore, gained momentum successful Punjab astir 2005-06. However, it has not importantly contributed to the financially strained state, arsenic nary authorities has been capable to make much than Rs 400 crore annually from it. This contented has go a governmental interest for each administration, arsenic soil is disposable to extremity users astatine precocious prices, yet the authorities struggles to capitalise connected it. The mining activities person transformed the lives of radical surviving adjacent the rivers.

Punjab has an estimated request of 2 crore tonnes of soil and mining has been a important governmental contented successful the state, influencing the communicative during the SAD-BJP conjugation authorities from 2007 to 2017, arsenic good arsenic nether Congress CM Amarinder Singh’s authorities from 2017 to 2021, and subsequently during Charanjit Singh Channi’s tenure from September 2021 to March 2022. The SAD-BJP authorities earned little than Rs 50 crore annually by implementing a reverse bidding strategy for mining operations.

The Congress authorities aboriginal changed the mining system, but it was incapable to make much than Rs 350 crore annually from this sector. AAP main Arvind Kejriwal promised earlier the past Assembly elections that the authorities would gain Rs 20,000 crore a twelvemonth from soil mining. However, to date, the authorities has lone managed to gain astir Rs 300 crore.

In the post-terrorism era, Punjab experienced accelerated development, accrued currency flow, and a surge successful operation activities implicit the past 2 decades. However, a “politician-sand miners nexus” emerged during this period. Successive governments made pre-poll promises to dismantle this nexus and liberate the soil concern from its grip. The soil concern is present intimately linked to respective politicians, arsenic the soil mafia reportedly operates with governmental support.

An authoritative from the mining section stated that amerciable mining is occurring successful the state, and portion cases person been registered, the grade of the contented is little important than it was successful the past. “That’s wherefore the Opposition is not raising concerns. Otherwise, would they stay silent?”