-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Humble sand is today big business. The boom in the construction industry in the last decade has triggered a huge demand for sand, to meet which contractors, with the help of pliant state officials, have begun a dig-load-sell exercise at a frantic pace. The story of illegal loot of sand in this high-stake business is repeated in state after state. TOI spoke to several officials, activists,...
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Panel finds rampant mining
-The Telegraph New Delhi: A Union government panel has found evidence of rampant illegal mining along the Yamuna in Gautam Budh Nagar in Uttar Pradesh where the suspension of an IAS officer who had cracked down on the sand mafia has snowballed into a political controversy. A three-member panel set up by the environment ministry said there has been "rampant, unscientific and illegal mining" at several sites along the river in violation...
More »Sand mining causes Yamuna to shift 500m east, threaten Noida -Vandana Keelor
-The Times of India NOIDA: The sand mafia, against which suspended IAS officer Durga Nagpal had started a campaign, has been responsible for the Yamuna shifting course about 500 metres east, posing a threat to sectors 150, 151, 153, 135, 167 and 168 of Noida. Irrigation department officials here say they have repeatedly warned the district administration about this and also filed several FIRs with the police, the last one in March...
More »UP IAS officer who took on sand mafia suspended -Dipankar Ghose
-The Indian Express Noida (Uttar Pradesh): The Uttar Pradesh government on Sunday suspended an IAS officer who had taken on the sand mafia by clamping down on illegal mining in the Yamuna and Hindon riverbeds over the last few months. Durga Shakti Nagpal, a 2009-batch IAS officer posted as Sub Divisional Magistrate (Sadar) in Gautam Buddh Nagar, had impounded several trucks engaged in illegal quarrying and registered over 20 FIRs. The reason cited...
More »Fresh incidents of cloud burst as heavy rains lash Uttarakhand
-PTI DEHRADUN: Fresh incidents of cloud burst, landslides and house collapses were reported in Uttarakahnd after moderate to heavy rains lashed the state. Cloud burst incident was reported from Sunali village of Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, while moderate to heavy rains continued to lash the state. However, there was no report of any human loss or injury, said the officials at National Disaster Management and Mitigation centre. Several houses were hit by mud and slush...
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