Loading their boats with sand, Yamuna river banks, Uttar Pradesh, India. Captions and Photo source: ©© Harshad Sharma
Excerpts;
The rain managed to do what the district administration could not for long. The continuing downpour has dampened illegal sand mining operations in Gautam Budh Nagar, with officials of the mining department saying that the temporary relief would aid them greatly in identifying spots where such illegal operations are carried out. Officials will now be able to locate illegal bridges and structures left behind by the sand mining mafia.
The officials cited the vast ecological destruction along the Konkan coast as an example of the destructive nature of such illegal sand mining. “In Uttar Pradesh, a similar drive and spread of awareness is required…”
Read Full Article, “Downpour halts illegal sand mining,”Times Of India