Deputy Commissioner of Yadgir R. Ragapriya chaired a district-level sand committee meeting on Tuesday and suggested that officials take steps to prevent illegal sand extraction and storage in the district.
She said that according to the new sand policy, the gram panchayat has been given power to issue sand transport permission to customers for a fee of ₹300 per tonne.
“Customers after getting permission should follow rules while transporting sand. They should lift sand from identified places and transport it in light vehicles without causing any harm to the environment,” she said.
Dr. Ragapriya said that teams of officials, including those from the Public Works, Water Resources, Forest and Mines and Geology departments, headed by tahsildars of the respective taluks should jointly inspect grade 1 to 3 areas such as streams, tanks and rivers in Surpur, Shahapur, Wadagera, Gurmitkal and Yadgir taluks.
They should also implement rules for transportation and prevention of sand. It was also decided at the meeting to give responsibility to Hatti Gold Mines for transportation and prevention of sand mining in grade 4 to 6 areas.
Additional Deputy Commissioner Shankargowda Somnal, Superintendent of Police C.B.Vedamurthy, Senior Scientist of Mines and Geology Pushpavathi K.N. and tahsildars of Yadgir, Shahapur, Gurmitkal, Wadagera, Surpur and Hunsagi were present.
