St Estevam youth force truckers to unload sand
News item in the English daily Herald dated 22 Oct. 2013:
St Estevam youth force truckers to unload sand
October 22, 2013
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: With Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar expressing his reluctance to implement the ban on sand mining ordered by the National Green Tribunal--given that it is an important ingredient in construction--youth from St Estevam have decided to implement the ban and have stopped trucks ferrying sand in the dead of the night, making them unload the sand there itself.
The bold move was made by a group called FORO Boys on Saturday midnight. They later proudly presented their achievement by hoisting a banner atop the seized sand declaring their achievement, which they said took place “while the police sleep”.
When Herald spoke to Old Goa police inspector, he said the police were not intimated about the incident.
Earlier in the assembly, the chief minister while replying to a calling attention motion on the sand issue had termed the NGT order on sand extraction as judicial overreach and that the order was ‘unimplementable’.
He had also said that he would issue directions to police not to act against sand extraction and transportation and that it should be done only by the Mines Department officials.
Reports have been coming in that sand mining is also taking place in Curtorim with as many as 10 trucks plying per day allegedly by a panch from the local village panchayat.
The unanimous sentiment of the house was that sand mining should be allowed to continue and this has in fact emboldened the sand miners when the NGT order only prohibits those who do not have an environmental clearance from the state environment impact authority.
http://oheraldo.in/News/Main%20Page%20News/St-Estevam-youth-force-truckers-to-unload-sand/80970.html
Related news item from The Times of India:
Youth bust illegal transport of sand from Akhada
TNN | Oct 22, 2013, 04.50 AM IST
PANAJI: Irked by the inaction of local authorities, a group of youth stopped a truck carrying sand from Akhada through the main road of St Estevam late Saturday night.
The youth intercepted the vehicle at Foro, as it headed from Akhada riverside towards the St Estevam bridge. "They stopped it and unloaded the sand at Foro, as illegal sand extraction and transportation on the narrow road of the island has been going on for a long time," a villager said.
The islanders have been agitating over the illegal sand extraction for a long time. A complaint had been filed at Old Goa police station on May 31, 2011, regarding the rampant extraction activity in River Mandovi.
The islanders had held demonstrations and raised the issue at gram sabhas in the past. "We had stopped trucks on earlier occasions and called the police, too," a villager said.
The sand mining is being carried out illegally in contempt of the orders of the high court of Bombay at Goa, dated July 19, 2010, and also the North Goa district magistrate dated September 4. "The notification issued by North Goa district magistrate dated May 25, 2011, which was specific to banning transportation through St Estevam island as the roads are narrow is also being violated," Bismarque Dias, a social activist said.
Recently, the national green tribunal also banned sand extraction, urging all the states to file a report about the action taken against the illegal activity.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Youth-bust-illegal-transport-of-sand-from-Akhada/articleshow/24505987.cms
St Estevam youth force truckers to unload sand
October 22, 2013
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: With Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar expressing his reluctance to implement the ban on sand mining ordered by the National Green Tribunal--given that it is an important ingredient in construction--youth from St Estevam have decided to implement the ban and have stopped trucks ferrying sand in the dead of the night, making them unload the sand there itself.
The bold move was made by a group called FORO Boys on Saturday midnight. They later proudly presented their achievement by hoisting a banner atop the seized sand declaring their achievement, which they said took place “while the police sleep”.
When Herald spoke to Old Goa police inspector, he said the police were not intimated about the incident.
Earlier in the assembly, the chief minister while replying to a calling attention motion on the sand issue had termed the NGT order on sand extraction as judicial overreach and that the order was ‘unimplementable’.
He had also said that he would issue directions to police not to act against sand extraction and transportation and that it should be done only by the Mines Department officials.
Reports have been coming in that sand mining is also taking place in Curtorim with as many as 10 trucks plying per day allegedly by a panch from the local village panchayat.
The unanimous sentiment of the house was that sand mining should be allowed to continue and this has in fact emboldened the sand miners when the NGT order only prohibits those who do not have an environmental clearance from the state environment impact authority.
http://oheraldo.in/News/Main%20Page%20News/St-Estevam-youth-force-truckers-to-unload-sand/80970.html
Related news item from The Times of India:
Youth bust illegal transport of sand from Akhada
TNN | Oct 22, 2013, 04.50 AM IST
PANAJI: Irked by the inaction of local authorities, a group of youth stopped a truck carrying sand from Akhada through the main road of St Estevam late Saturday night.
The youth intercepted the vehicle at Foro, as it headed from Akhada riverside towards the St Estevam bridge. "They stopped it and unloaded the sand at Foro, as illegal sand extraction and transportation on the narrow road of the island has been going on for a long time," a villager said.
The islanders have been agitating over the illegal sand extraction for a long time. A complaint had been filed at Old Goa police station on May 31, 2011, regarding the rampant extraction activity in River Mandovi.
The islanders had held demonstrations and raised the issue at gram sabhas in the past. "We had stopped trucks on earlier occasions and called the police, too," a villager said.
The sand mining is being carried out illegally in contempt of the orders of the high court of Bombay at Goa, dated July 19, 2010, and also the North Goa district magistrate dated September 4. "The notification issued by North Goa district magistrate dated May 25, 2011, which was specific to banning transportation through St Estevam island as the roads are narrow is also being violated," Bismarque Dias, a social activist said.
Recently, the national green tribunal also banned sand extraction, urging all the states to file a report about the action taken against the illegal activity.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Youth-bust-illegal-transport-of-sand-from-Akhada/articleshow/24505987.cms
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