The Telangana High Court has issued notices to the State government regarding ‘illegal sand mining’ in Bichukonda mandal of Kamareddy district, following a letter from local bar association president A. Prakash, which was taken up as a PIL petition.
A division bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice J. Sreenivas Rao directed officials from various government departments to file counter affidavits within four weeks.
In his letter, Prakash alleged that officials from the Police, Road Transport Authority, Revenue, Mining, and Telangana Mineral Development Corporation were colluding with the local sand ‘mafia.’
The letter noted that illegal sand mining was rampant, particularly in Khadgam-Shetlur suburbs.
This activity reportedly resulted in an average daily loss of ₹20-30 lakh to the government. Prakash requested that the High Court direct the government to install surveillance cameras at strategic locations to monitor illegal mining and transportation of sand.
The letter also highlighted that the high frequency of sand-laden lorries during the night posed risks to people commuting to nearby villages.
Additionally, the bench issued notices to the government and officers of Karimnagar district concerning illegal granite mining, following a letter from citizen D. Arun Kumar, which was also taken up as a PIL petition. Kumar’s letter claimed that rampant granite mining in Asifnagar village near Baopet of Kothapally mandal was causing significant environmental damage.
Kumar reported that dust pollution from indiscriminate mining was severely impacting local flora and fauna. The bench instructed the authorities to file counter affidavits within four weeks.
