Rampant sand smuggling in Peddapalli

Peddapalli: Illegal soil mafia is going on in the tanks in Manthani and Ramagundam constituencies in Peddapalli district.

The owners of brick kilns who have acquired the tanks with political favours are extracting soil beyond the permits and looting the ponds and tanks. There are many allegations that the officials are being tamed and the police are running arbitrarily offering bribes. The clay is being transported directly from the ponds to the brick kilns without any way bills.

Every year in summer, black soil which is available in the ponds required for brick making, is being transported with the help of political parties and whoever is in power. They are trampling the rules and moving the soil on a large scale to denting the government’s revenue.

Peddapalli, Rangampalli, Raghavapur, Ramagiri, Ramagundam, kamanpur, sulthanabad, Dharmaram, Katnapalli, contain more than 150 brick kilns. Bricks are being supplied from here to Hyderabad, Warangal, Mancherial, etc.

It is said that they are moving soil on a large scale by taking permission on behalf of the owners of brick kilns or on behalf of others and paying a certain amount of royalty and seigniorage. Some of the owners of brick kilns are earning lakhs of rupees by buying the clay they need and selling the clay to others. A brick kiln owner from Gaureddypet has taken permission to move soil in Julapalli pond of Kamanpur mandal and paid royalty to the government for moving 6000 and then 2000 tons of soil.

But during the night many trucks moved more than 15000 tons of soil without any road bills.

Ramgundam Mandal Allur pond soil was moved by a person from Miyapur who took permission and paid royalty for 2 to 4000 tons soil and moved more soil.

Although the people of the respective villages brought to the notice of the concerned authorities about the lorries illegally transporting soil from these two ponds, no action was taken against them.

Permissions were obtained for soil excavation in Bittupalli pond in Manthani mandal, but the permissions were canceled on the complaint of the villager, which was redeemed after a week. There are allegations that royalty is being paid for 10,000 tonnes of soil and the soil is being moved against the rules.

As Sripada Yellampalli project dried up a pond, the eyes of the illegals fell on it. Ten heavy excavators and more than 45 lorries have been placed in this pond and more than 35to 45 tons of soil is being dumped from the pond in each lorry at the government site near the pond. Even if the officials come to inspect the dump to conceal the size of the soil excavated, they have been using 10 bladed tractors cover up the soil from measuring.

Fight for Better Society president Maddela Dinesh, wants the Collector to investigate the matter and take action.