Sunabeda/Semiliguda: Authorities sealed an unauthorised stone crusher unit at Beheraguda under Semiliguda tehsil in Koraput district Wednesday during a joint raid by the officials of the state pollution control board (SPCB), the district mining department and the Revenue department.
The unit, operated under the name LG Construction, was closed after officials found it was running without mandatory clearance from the SPCB as required under the Central Pollution Control Board’s 2023 guidelines, SPCB regional officer Dipesh Biswal said.
He said all crusher units must obtain SPCB approval and comply with the rules, but this operator had ignored repeated notices.
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A district task force had been formed months ago and served notice to the owner, but no reply was received.
Earlier, in a joint raid February 20, authorities had seized 2,150 cubic meters of illegally extracted minerals from the same unit and imposed a penalty of RS 7,05,230. The fine remains unpaid, mining officer Krushnachandra Khuntia said.
The operator also failed to follow basic norms such as Consent to Establish (CTE) and Consent to Operate (CTO), he added.
Khuntia said crusher units violating guidelines will face further heat from the authorities. Officials present during Wednesday’s operation included the Semiliguda tehsildar, Semiliguda police inspector Purnima Tirkey, Tata Power officials and personnel from other line departments.
The team disconnected the power supply and sealed the machinery after tagging the equipment.
