Puri: Sand dunes which act as natural barriers against cyclones and tidal ingress will soon vanish from the Puri coast due to rampant illegal sand mining on the coast, sources said.
The administration has failed to check illegal mining of the minor mineral on the coast and take action against the sand mafia. The illegal sand mining has made many coastal areas of Puri district vulnerable to tidal ingress, locals claimed.
According to sources, illegal sand mining on the coast has been thriving for past several days due to administrative callousness. The mafia uses heavy vehicles to transport sand to various places at night. After receiving complaints from the locals, the administration occasionally seizes a few vehicles and arrests their drivers by carrying out raids on illegal sand mining on the coast. However, it is yet to take any concrete measures to check the illegal extraction of the mineral, sources said.
Recently, some people were lifting sand from a piece of government land close to the dump yard of Puri municipality. On being informed, a team of Baliapanda police raided the spot and arrested three sand lifters. A sand-laden tractor was seized during the raid. However, two sand lifters managed to flee the spot, sources said.
The police had also busted a major sand lifting racket from Baliapanda area of the city here February 22 last year. Two earthmovers and 15 vehicles were seized and nine drivers were arrested in connection with illegal sand lifting from the coast, sources added.
“Some influential people have been lifting sand from Baliapanda and Sipasarubali areas on Puri coast for last many days. Now, one can find large pits on government lands in these two localities. The sand mafia is minting crores of rupees from the illegal act,” said a social activist.
