Illegal mining continues unabated in MP, govt takes extra measures

The death of journalist Sandeep Sharma in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhind has put the spotlight on illegal sand mining in the state. This is not the first time that a death has been linked to the practice of illegal mining that has thrived despite several measures to check the practice.

In March 2012, a young IPS officer Narendra Kumar was run over in Morena by a tractor-trolley carrying illegally mined stone slabs. He was attempting to stop the vehicle. In the same district last year, a senior sub-inspector was injured by another sandladen tractor-trolley that refused to stop when asked to. In April 2015, a constable was run over by a truck filled with illegally mined sand when he tried to stop it.

An IAS officer Sonia Meena was threatened at gunpoint by illegal miners when, as a sub-divisional magistrate in Chhattarpur district, she made an attempt to check illegal mining in Betwa river in February 2017. Later, she faced a death threat.

“When government officers are facing threat to their life from mining mafia, the situation of journalists who want to expose them can be anybody’s guess,” said a government officer on the condition of anonymity.

Former state home minister Babulal Gaur said when he toured the Gwalior-Chambal region in 2013, many police officers requested for a transfer as they couldn’t manage illegal sand mining in the area and associated political pressure. “Illegal mining cannot flourish without political patronage irrespective of the party in power,” he said.

BHOPAL: