Authorities have to check sand mining: SC

Supreme Court directs five states to provide facts on illegal sand mining activities, emphasizing the need for control.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday (December 4, 2024) made it clear that authorities have to check sand mining while directing five States, including Tamil Nadu, to be ready with facts and figures showing the extent of the activity.

“Certainly, sandmining has to be checked... There has to be control. There is illegal sand mining,” Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna observed.

The Bench, also comprising Justice Sanjay Kumar, was hearing a petition filed by M. Alagarsamy, represented by advocate Prashant Bhushan, who has sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into rampant illegal beach and river sand mining causing severe ecological imbalance, disturbance in water tables and degradation of land across the five States of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh.

The plea said illegal sand mining activities in these States had reached alarming proportions. There was scant respect paid to the Sustainable Sand Mining Management Guidelines of 2016.

The apex court directed the five States to come prepared for the next hearing with the facts and figures on sand mining activities. The case has been listed for the week commencing January 27, 2025.

Tamil Nadu Additional Advocate General, senior advocate Amit Anand Tiwari, said CCTV cameras had been installed in various sand mining spots in the State.

Mr. Bhushan sought a direction to the Tamil Nadu government to place the FIRs registered in sand mining cases on record in the top court.