Sene flays govt move to allow sand mining using JCBs

Raitha Sangha District General Secretary Gurushanthappa said that a contractor from Haveri had sought permission to use mechanised boat and JCB for sand mining. The Government had taken the decision of giving permission for the same based on this request. He said that Government is blindly following the policy adopted by Maharashtra and Tamilnadu where sand mining is going on using mechanised boats and JCBs.

“There is lot of ecological difference between Maharashtra and Tamilnadu. In plains, the rivers flow very slowly and in Tamilnadu the rivers have lot of rocks and boulders. In such conditions using mechanised techniques is advisable,” he said and added that in Western Ghats, rivers flow down a distance of 1,000 ft with great speed and the features of the region is not fit for mechanised mining.

“Government officials are saying that a sum of Rs 30 crore has been added to State exchequer due to bidding of sand mining, but at the same time, bridges and roads worth crores of rupees have been damaged,” he said. Leaders K P Chandregowda, K H Chandregowda, Shashidhar and others were present.