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Collector deals a blow to sand mafia
Srikakulam: The action of District Collector P Laxminarasimham in imposing a penalty of Rs 1 lakh on tractors which were used to shift sand illegally from Thamminaidupeta in Etcherla mandal has dent a serious blow to sand mafia in the region. On November 4, revenue and police officials conducted a joint raid and seized 23 sand-laden tractors at Thamminaidupeta. The tractors which were ferrying
Srikakulam: The action of District Collector P Laxminarasimham in imposing a penalty of Rs 1 lakh on tractors which were used to shift sand illegally from Thamminaidupeta in Etcherla mandal has dent a serious blow to sand mafia in the region.
On November 4, revenue and police officials conducted a joint raid and seized 23 sand-laden tractors at Thamminaidupeta.
The tractors which were ferrying sand illegally were detained at Etcherla police
station. District Collector and district level Sand Committee (DLSC) chairman, P Laxminarasimham imposed Rs 1 lakh as penalty on each tractor according to GO No 42. But the tractors owners, unable to pay the amount have left their vehicles at Etcherla PS for the last one month.
“We used to shift sand for our domestic purposes, but officials had registered a case and imposed a penalty on us,” said Dharmana Ganesh, a tractor-owner.
Officials paid no heed to our version of things, said G Trinadh, another owner. “Acting on a tip-off, we had conducted raids and seized the tractors.
We had then forwarded the case to the Mines and Geology department which in turn examined the tractors, registered a case and forwarded it to the District collector for further action,” said Y Ramakrishna and Etcherla tahsildar Kimidi Rammohan.
The Collector had subsequently examined the report of the Mines and Geology department and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on each of the tractors, said assistant director for Mines and Geology Kancharapu Lakshmi Vara Prasad.
Unable (or unwilling) to pay the huge penalty, the tractor-owners are reportedly making rounds around the offices of politicians to get their tractors back. Meanwhile, locals say that thanks to the decision of the Collector, there has been a significant decline in illegal mining in the region of late.
