Spurt in illegal sand mining cases, North Karnataka rivers ravaged

Kalaburagi: Illegal sand mining cases in north Karnataka, which have devastated rivers, have gone up from 4,402 in 2022-23 to 5,441 in 2023-24. The state government has reported that fines collected during this period have also increased by 40 per cent, from Rs 8 crore to Rs 11.11 crore.

“Illegal miners are transporting twice the permissible limit of sand from Channur, Gonal and several villages of Vadagera taluk in Yadgir district in trucks, destroying roads. Officials have become mute spectators as the tippers pass by RTO offices and police stations. There has been no action even after I complained,” says K B Manikareddy, a resident of Kurakunda in Vadagera taluk. 

Five years ago, the Department of Mines and Geology auctioned sand mining blocks on some riverbeds of Krishna, Tungabhadra and its tributaries after laying down strict guidelines to prevent degradation of river beds. However, many miners tend to ignore these rules and over extract sand, despite raids and seizures.  

Raichur-based activist Hanumanth Bhangi, who has been fighting illegal sand mining in the region for years, claims he has been receiving threats for filing public interest litigations against the illegal trade. “Excessive sand mining has led to depletion of groundwater levels and environmental degradation. Machines are being used for sand mining despite guidelines allowing only manual extraction,” he explains. 

Officials found that a whopping 2.59 lakh tonnes of sand was illegally sourced from Koppal district in 2023-24. Close to two tonnes of sand was found illegally stored in Yadgir district. Officials have also seized illegal stores of around 15,000 tonnes of sand in Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Raichur, Dakshina Kannada and Koppal districts.

“Miners are digging 10-12 feet though the limit is three feet,” he adds.  MLA Karemma G Nayak has launched a drive to curb the sand mafia along the banks of the Krishna in the Devadurga Assembly constituency. “Illegal sand mining, which depletes groundwater levels, has come down by 50% after I launched an awareness programme. We also conducted night patrolling despite threats. The police, mines and geology staff and public works department should initiate strict measures against sand mining,” she says. Karemma has also raised the issue in Legislative Assembly.

Staff shortage 

The acute staff shortage has crippled the mines and the geology department. As the existing staff and police personnel were deployed for election duty, illegal activities had spiked. 

“We are patrolling every night with tahsildar, PWD and police officials and have shifted around 750 tonnes of illegally stored sand adjacent to the river in Afzalpur taluk,” says Somashekhar M, deputy director of the Kalaburagi mines and geology department. “With only two geologists, we can’t keep a watch on illegal sand mining in all taluks,” he adds.  

In addition to the existing blocks, more than 200 sand mining blocks have been identified along the riverbeds for auctioning. The process would be completed by August, according to senior geologist Vijay Vikram. “Karnataka has limited sand deposits on the rivers due to floods over the years, forcing us to depend on M (manufactured)-sand. Around 57 leaseholders are engaged in sand mining, apart from Karnataka State Minerals Corporation Ltd and Hutti Gold Mines Company Ltd,” he adds.