Sand mining is again on the public radar after chief minister Nitish Kumar and his deputy Sushil Modi promised a crackdown on the shady but thriving business, known in local parlance as " balu mafia", spread across the riverine districts of Bihar.
Modi has even insinuated a link between a section of the sand miners and RJD chief Lalu Prasad and his family.
On Tuesday, Patna High Court directed the state to file a reply stating the action it has taken till date against the sand mafia active in Bihar.
But what exactly is this "sand mafia"?
In April this year, then deputy inspector-general of police, Patna, Shalin, had submitted a report to the high court naming the persons involved in the trade and also detailing why the sand miners are called "mafia". The report said it's a huge nexus between the local police, sand miners enjoying political clout and officials of the mines department.
"It's a cartel that is impossible to investigate with the local administration. It should go to the CBI," said a senior police officer. The report also pointed out violations made by companies which were given the sand mining lease.
In Bihta and Maner, the total land permitted for sand mining was just 12 hectares. The report found that mining was being done on 150 hectares. There was a violation of the Bihar Minor Mining Concession (Amendment) Rules, 2014, which says that the maximum depth of sand quarrying in riverbeds will not exceed 3 metres. But it was found that the violation was up to 10 metres. In many places, small lakes and large ponds have been carved out of the landscape as a result of this illegality.
Violation was reported in clause 7(v) of the new sand policy of the mines and geology department as there was no clean, potable water, health and sanitation facilities for workers employed. There were no signages demarcating the permissible area for mining at the site as mandated under the new policy. The report pointed towards serious environmental pollution because of dust flying all around causing air pollution and deep scars made in the landscape flouting environmental guidelines.
The report indicates that local people pointed out that hundreds of tractors and trolleys used for sand mining every day. But it could not locate even a temporary office at the site mandated under Rule 10 of the Bihar Minor Mineral Concession Rules, 1972.
There was no provision for weighing the sand being quarried as mandated under the law. The report states that M/s Broadson Commodities Pvt Ltd, in which Subhash Yadav is one of the directors, carries out the "illegal sand mining operation" in Bihta/Maner. "The source of his clout is his money and affiliation to the RJD. He is locally perceived to be an influential person having direct access to the top RJD leadership," says the report, a copy of which is with The Telegraph.
Shalin also visited Kurjee Ghat at Digha in Patna, Narayan Balera Ghat and Kuberchak Ghat in Bhojpur district. The scenario is the same everywhere.
The report talks about the perfect collusion and complete connivance of state government officials, particularly those from the police, mining and transport department and the rules and laws on mining and environment are merely reduced to paper. No environmental clearance was taken for mining in the areas for the entire period of 2015, stressing that mining licence of the contractors would be cancelled.
Patna senior superintendent of police Manu Maharaaj has promised a crackdown against the criminals. On Tuesday, the high court division bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice Anil Kumar Upadhyay sought an action report from the state while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Sunil Kumar Singh, who had alleged that rampant illegal sand mining was on in Patna and in other districts of the state, which was hazardous for the environment.
The petitioner had alleged that the administrative machinery has failed to curb the menace.
The RJD is crying foul over the sudden brouhaha over the "balu mafia".
"In the eyes of the new Nitish government I am a sand mafiosi and senior officials have been deputed to take action against me. I fear a threat to my life," said Maner RJD MLA Bhai Birendra.
RJD chief Lalu Prasad, however, said there was no controversy at all regarding sand mining. "Who gave Subhash Yadav (one of the key figures embroiled in sand mining cases and considered close to Lalu) the licences? Nitish was the CM when he got the licences in 2011. Subhash himself has lodged many FIRs against illegal sand mining," Lalu said on Wednesday.
