District admin to sell sand at affordable rate

Nagarkurnool: Flooded with complaints against the sand mafia which has been selling the commodity at exorbitant rates to people, the district administration has devised a strategy to give relief to the people and provide sand at affordable rate to them within the stipulated time frame.

As part of the government’s initiative, the customers can book a tractor load of sand at just Rs 161. The scheme will be launched in a week.
 However, the district administration has put some conditions and not everyone is eligible to book the sand this rate of extremely low price and those who are in need of sand have to come through the panchayat secretary or village revenue officer.

The officials concerned will conduct a field visit to verify the application and submit a report to the tehsildar, who will then issue the permission only if he/she is satisfied by the report. 

The applicant will have to pay the amount to the government directly in the form of a challan that can be obtained from bank or mee-seva centre. Of the total amount, officials will keep Rs 126 and the remaining will be deposited into the account of the district mining and IT departments. 

While giving clarifications on the new guidelines on the issue of supplying sand at cheaper rates to the needy in the district Srinivasulu, Assistant Director, District Ground water department said that they have recently decided to provide sand at cheaper rates to the public.

At the same time he added if any illegal sand miners are resorting to sell the sand in the black market without taking permission from the concerned authorities will be taken to task and cases would be booked against them, he warned. 

On other hand, with the sand mafia taking up the reins of supplying sand, it is trying to create an artificial demand by spreading the misinformation of shortage of sand and is reaping huge profits by selling the same through black markets at exorbitant rates to the customers in the district. 

The situation has reached to a stage where it is becoming tough for the common man to buy sand at affordable price. With this, the general public and particularly the poor are facing tough time to realise their dream of building their own house. 

While pouring out his woes, Chandrasekhar, a resident of Nagarkurnool who had booked the sand more than one month back online, he is still waiting for it to be delivered.  As he is already in the middle of construction of house is now forced to approach the black marketers who are charging exorbitant rates for a trolley of tractor.

“Though the government rate for each trolley of sand is costing just Rs 2,000, the black marketers are charging anyway between Rs 5,000 to Rs 6000 and fleecing the common man. The black market of sand is flourishing unchecked because of inordinate delay of the government sand depots not delivering the orders on time,” observed Chandrasekhar. 

It is learnt that several illegal sand miners have come together to form a cartel and charging a whopping Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 for each load of tractor trolley.

Now the district administration has devised a plan to give relief to the common man but with a rider of getting approval of officials it is difficult to say people may get rid of sand mafia raj soon.