Illegal Sand Miners

Illegal sand miners attacked forest officials and fled with two tractor-trolleys loaded with the construction material that the team had seized in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district, an official said on Sunday.

Two senior women bureaucrats, including an IAS officer, were allegedly assaulted by a group of sand miners when they raided an illegal sand extraction unit in neighbouring Udupi district, police said today.

On a day when the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav assured that he was serious about acting against illegal miners in the state, it came to light that one of his officers was threatened a month ago that he would be burnt alive if he didn't release the men he had nabbed in a raid.

People from Viapar, a coastal village in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin district, say they have never seen sea waves reach so close to their homes. Several neighbouring villages echo the same story as years of illegal mining have led to heavy beach erosion across the region.

Ashish Kumar, who was the District Collector of Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu till two days ago, was handed his transfer order on Tuesday evening. Earlier that day, he had conducted raids on mineral quarries owned by local mining barons in two villages in the district.

The Chambal region, which offers illegal sand miners an ample base to loot from, has fallen into a lull following the murder. However, the illegal trade still continues.

After a special report by NDTV, illegal mining has been stopped at the Kappad beach of Kerala. Coastal Management officials have now stopped sand miners from taking away sand on the coast after NDTV exposed how illegal mining took place in the early hours of the morning.

Illegal sand miners attacked forest officials and fled with two tractor-trolleys loaded with the construction material that the team had seized in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district, an official said on Sunday.

Two senior women bureaucrats, including an IAS officer, were allegedly assaulted by a group of sand miners when they raided an illegal sand extraction unit in neighbouring Udupi district, police said today.

On a day when the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav assured that he was serious about acting against illegal miners in the state, it came to light that one of his officers was threatened a month ago that he would be burnt alive if he didn't release the men he had nabbed in a raid.

People from Viapar, a coastal village in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin district, say they have never seen sea waves reach so close to their homes. Several neighbouring villages echo the same story as years of illegal mining have led to heavy beach erosion across the region.

Ashish Kumar, who was the District Collector of Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu till two days ago, was handed his transfer order on Tuesday evening. Earlier that day, he had conducted raids on mineral quarries owned by local mining barons in two villages in the district.

The Chambal region, which offers illegal sand miners an ample base to loot from, has fallen into a lull following the murder. However, the illegal trade still continues.

After a special report by NDTV, illegal mining has been stopped at the Kappad beach of Kerala. Coastal Management officials have now stopped sand miners from taking away sand on the coast after NDTV exposed how illegal mining took place in the early hours of the morning.