THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Defying the ban orders on quarrying, mining activities still continue at Mookunnimala without any hindrance. The ban has been in vogue for the last six months for facilitating the Vigilance team to complete the survey and has not been lifted till now.
With the Vigilance now completing the survey, mining activities have again picked up in the hill. In a recent episode, the Nemom police registered a case against a quarry owner on November 7. Despite quarry activities going on for some days, the police are alleged to have not visited the spot of illegal blasting near Malayam. But they were forced to visit the spot and take action after repeated calls were made, said Mookunnimala Samrakshana Samithi activists.
The Samithi leaders said that blasting was regularly going on during early morning and evenings. Moreover, vehicles carrying crushed rock were seen going out of the quarries, they said. Though the police had registered a case against only one quarry, several quarries are functioning in the hill, they said. All this was happening when a ban was in vogue.
The Samithi also said that neither the Revenue officials nor the police were doing anything to stop the illegal activities in the hill. ‘’If they had visited the place regularly to inspect the quarries, then such activities would not have taken place,’’ they said.
The Vigilance, in its survey report, has unearthed illegal quarrying in the region, mining beyond the required parameters and encroachment on public lands. It was found that 43.2 hectares of government property was encroached upon by private quarries. As per the interim report, 34.49 hectares of ‘puramboke’ land, 8.59 hectares of rock ‘puramboke’ and 0.136 hectares of road ‘puramboke’ were encroached upon. It was also found that illegal mining activities were done in 343 acres of assigned land, which had been exclusively given for rubber cultivation.
Another major finding is that illegal quarrying was found within the buffer zone of the Army Firing Range and the Radar Station of the Southern Air Command. The team also found that survey rock marks and survey stones were removed, which was against the Survey Act.