Filtered sand mafia indeed are a tenacious lot. Though the state government imposed a ban on filtered sand, the mafia is alive and thriving, right under the noses of authorities.
The ban, which came into effect on April 1, 2011, was aimed at wiping out the mafia by booking them under the Anti-Goonda Act and to ensure that there would be no compromise when it comes to materials used for construction purposes.
But, as it turns out, the mafia is making quick money from the business. While the problem earlier was confined to select taluk and zilla panchayats, it has now extended to areas under the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) jurisdiction.
For example, some people have been busy for the last four months filtering sand at Geddalahalli in Horamavu Ward.
The mafia is making money without any investment. Gullible people are being cheated by this mafia, which offers a truck load of sand atRs5,000, less than the actual price which is around Rs20,000.
“They earn more money with little investment. We have to spend a lot of money on transportation of sand from distant places and pay a fee to the government. While these people bring soil from other places and filter it by using the drain water,’’ said a sand dealer.
The residents of Geddalahalli suspect the local police to be hand-in-glove with the sand mafia. They said it would be impossible for anyone to indulge in such illegal activity without the support of local police. But G Prabhakar, circle inspector, Hennur Police Station, expressed ignorance about filtered sand activity being carried out at Geddalahalli. “I have not received any information on filtered sand at Geddalahalli. I will take action if anyone provides information to us,’’ said Prabhakar.
The mafia seems to be clever. They bring soil in tippers and use the water let into the Raja Canal by the sewage treatment plant maintained by the BWSSB. They have also installed a diesel water pump there, apart from maintaining a huge stock of filtered sand ready for transportation.
The sand is loaded into a truck (KA-01 5584) by using an earth-mover. However, neither the local corporator nor MLA is aware of this. “There is no place for such activity in my ward,’’ said Tejaswini Raju, corporator of Horamavu. When informed about the mafia using drain water, Raju said: “I never visited the location. People even hesitate to touch the drain water. I do not know how these people are using such dirty water to make filtered sand.’’
According to the some residents, Shivakumar, tahsildar of KR Puram, had been informed about this matter two months ago.
Residents said that Shivakumar arrived at the spot and promptly seized the vehicles, but a phone call from a powerful politician forced him to release the vehicles and leave the spot without taking any action. “The tahsildar might have taken action if they did not have the backing of an elected representative,’’ said a resident on condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, NS Nandish Reddy, KR Puram MLA, said he would not encourage illegal activities. “I will direct the authorities to take stringent action against those involving in the business,’’ said Reddy.
The residents of Geddlahalli also want to know why the tahsildar returned from the spot without taking any action against those people as well as the name of the politician who directed him to release the seized vehicles.
However, Shivakumar CL, tahsildar of KR Puram, said that he visited the spot and directed the people to stop filtering the sand. Shivakumar also claimed that he had informed the police about it.
When told that police are denying it, the tahsildar said: “Is it so? I will depute a revenue inspector to the spot tomorrow and file a criminal complaint.”
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