NEW DELHI: Amid growing concerns over illegal sand mining in the Yamuna River areas near the Delhi-UP border, CM Rekha Gupta has written to Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath urging him to take immediate steps to curb the activity.
She has highlighted that such illegal activities are weakening the river’s embankments, thereby increasing the risk of flooding. She has also apprised Adityanath of the concerns the National Green Tribunal raised in the recent past.
Gupta emphasised that it is causing severe ecological damage, posing significant challenges to the river’s future. She pointed out that the changes resulting from this environmental disruption directly impact populations living along the Yamuna banks.
Calling it an inter-state issue, the CM underlined the need for a coordinated and joint enforcement mechanism between the two governments to address and control illegal sand mining.
Stating that “with your support, we can find an effective solution to this issue”, she also requested the UP CM to instruct his officials to initiate a joint inter-state demarcation process to clearly define jurisdictional boundaries, allowing for synchronised administrative efforts by both states to safeguard the region’s ecological balance.
Unmarked inter-state boundaries worsen situation
Government sources stated that such illegal activities grossly violate environmental norms, including the manipulation of the riverbed and alteration of the river’s natural flow. They noted that the lack of clear jurisdictional boundaries between the two states in certain riverfront areas has led to confusion in enforcement, further complicating the situation.
This January, the NGT took suo motu cognisance of the increasing scale of illegal mining in the Yamuna floodplain between Alipur in North Delhi and Panchayara in Ghaziabad, following reports that the sand miners were building makeshift roads across the Yamuna to transport excavators and carry out mining operations in the floodplains.
Furthermore, sand mining can be severely detrimental to a river for several reasons. It could increase a river’s gradient, lead to excessive sediment transport, erode and damage instream habitats, cause erosion along the banks, and even change the river’s morphology.
The construction of temporary roads with polypropylene bags could further disrupt a river’s ecosystem by altering the riverbed, increasing erosion, changing its course, and even leading to flooding.
The NGT bench had, in April, impleaded several respondents, including the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, the Central Pollution Control Board, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and the District Magistrates of Ghaziabad and North Delhi.
The court had issued a notice to the respondents, directing them to file their responses or replies in the form of an affidavit at least one week before the next date of hearing.
The Ghaziabad District Administration submitted a report to the NGT, listing the measures it has taken to tackle sand mining along the Yamuna. The District Magistrate’s report had specifically highlighted persistent concerns about illegal mining on the Delhi side despite several notifications to relevant authorities.
The NGT has repeatedly stressed that these activities are causing significant harm and must be stopped. CM Gupta reiterated that the tribunal has already underlined the urgent need for regulatory enforcement and interstate coordination on the matter.