Pitfall

Bhubaneswar, Nov. 13: Sand quarries have become a major bone of contention among contractors, spawning violence and corruption in and around the city. Ironically, this rivalry is a fallout of the real estate boom that has pushed up the demand for sand in the capital.

With an annual requirement of approximately 10 lakh cubic metre of sand in the capital city, contractors are vying for sand pits and often using dubious means to achieve their targets.

On September 28, vigilance officials arrested Khurda tehsildar for accepting a bribe of Rs 15,000 from a contractor to renew his licence for quarrying sand.

Like graft, violence, too, has plagued the business. A major incident took place in 2003 when Saroj Ranjan Panda of Naharkanta village was killed by a sand quarry lease owner after the pit was closed down following resistance from villagers and a subsequent high court order.

This year on November 10, a complaint was lodged against the sarpanch of Bingharpur at Sadar police station in Cuttack for forcibly quarrying sand from a land owned by a private company. The sarpanch, Choudhury Dwarakanath Das, and his associates allegedly beat up the supervisor of the company when he opposed them. Das is still free.

Sand rates have gone up with a truckload, which is around six cubic metre of sand, costing between Rs 2,000 and Rs 2,500. Five years ago, it would have cost anything between Rs 600 and Rs 800.

Bhubaneswar gets its sand mostly from the auctioned sand beds of Kuakhai, Bhargavi, Daya and Kushabhadra rivers. However, D.S. Tripathy, president of Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (Credai), Odisha chapter, said sometimes it fell short of requirements and people have to depend on the sand beds of the Mahanadi.

Around 10 sand beds in Bhubaneswar, Balianta and Balipatna tehsils have been auctioned this year. Some sand quarries could not be auctioned during the current year because of disputes.

There are also allegations of tender holders illegally quarrying sand from outside their allotted area.

A relative of Saroj Ranjan Panda, who was killed by sand quarry contractors, said most of the lease owners have political clout and try to influence government officials. “They also terrorise local residents and violate norms while quarrying sand,” he said adding that the lease owner who killed Panda had been given permission to quarry sand from the Mancheswar side but he was digging it from the opposite side of Kuakhai river. When the people of Naharkanta opposed, the quarry was closed down and the contractor killed Panda in 2003.

A police officer also said sand business provided high profit. the mismanagement of profit money had led to a group clash in Kalyanpur area in 2009. Nearly 30 people were arrested by the police.

Tehsildars say that auction is done in accordance with the Orissa Minor Minerals Concession Rules 2004, which lays down guidelines for the lease owners. The lease holders must quarry sand only from the allotted area after paying the full auction amount. However, this rule is often violated.

However, Bhubaneswar tehsildar Harish Chandra Nayak said they have been keeping an eye on the lease owners.

Balianta tehsildar Akhaya Kumar Rout said the auction process was kept transparent and revenue inspectors made surprise visits to the auctioned areas and filed reports every month.