THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Defying several ban orders, mining activities still continue in Mookunnimala under the guise of court orders. Despite the ongoing illegal activities, the district administration has made it clear that it could act only if a concrete direction is received from the High Court.
The quarry units are engaged in mining activities, claiming to have obtained a High Court order, but it is said that most of the quarry units do not have the required papers.
Even though stop memo has been issued to many of the quarries, the people living in the vicinity of Mookunnimala said that they hear blasts in the night and also early morning. Vehicles can be seen frequently going out from the quarries. Though such illegal activities are taking place in the hill, no official had inspected the hill or the quarries, the Mookunnimala Samrakshana Samithi activists said. Several complaints have been submitted to the Mining and Geology Department, Tahsildar office, Police, Village Office and the Collectorate, they added.
Pointing out that they have given a representation to the new panchayat committee for stopping all illegal quarry activities, Samrakshana Samithi joint convenor Surendra Kumar alleged that the quarry activities were going on even when the licences of all quarries have expired. ‘’The quarry units are functioning under the guise of a High Court order. But these quarry units do not have all the papers that are needed for mining activities,’’ he said.
It was only last week that some of the lorries from the quarries were stopped and sent back at Edacode, near Pravachambalam. Surendra Kumar said that they are waiting for the new panchayat committee to come out with clarity on the issue.
When contacted, Collector Biju Prabhakar said that action can be taken only if clear directions are received from the High Court. ‘’It is a complicated issue. As such, it is better for the High Court, before which a case is pending, to give clear directions on the quarry issue,’’ he said.