MADURAI
A public interest litigation petition filed before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Thursday sought a direction to the State to initiate the sale of sand, be it quarried, imported or M-sand (manufactured sand), through bags of 25 kg, 50 kg and 100 kg in order to regulate illegal mining.
The petitioner, advocate B. Ramkumar Adityan of Thoothukudi, said illegal sand mining was going on in water basins across the State. When the demand for sand in construction industry had ballooned, not only had this increased sand mining in the State but also people resorted to all kinds of means, including procuring sand through illegal means, to meet the demand. Those opposing illegal sand mining were either killed or left gravely injured, he said.
In order to meet the increasing demand and put an end to illegal quarrying, the petitioner said, it was time for the State to come up with alternatives for river sand. The present monitoring methods were not helpful in curbing illegal sand mining.
He said regulation could be achieved through a distribution system. Also, the State should take up the manufacture and promotion of M-sand in the interest of the environment, he said, and sought a direction to the State to look into his representation made for it.
A Division Bench of Justices N. Kirubakaran and S. S. Sundar, which heard the matter, ordered notice to the State. The court also sought a report from the State on the process involved in the manufacture of M-sand and adjourned hearing by two weeks.
