JAGATSINGHPUR: A major sand smuggling racket was unearthed by police which seized at least eight sand-laden trucks bound for Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in separate incidents on Thursday night.
In the first instance, six trucks registered in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu were found transporting sand from Devi river after unloading cement for local traders. Acting on a tip-off, locals, led by BJP activists Tarun Kumar Das and Sudarsan Panda, intercepted the trucks at Balia Gopinathpur on Cuttack-Nuagaon NH within Biridi police limits. The locals promptly informed the mining officer, tehsildar and police of the matter following which the trucks were seized and their drivers detained.
Two more trucks were seized for similar offence on the day. District mining officer Pratish Kumar Tarai lodged an FIR with Biridi police, reporting illegal transportation of sand by the six trucks on Thursday night. The sand was being transported from Chasikhand sand quarry ghat on Devi river.
Biridi IIC Sabyasachi Rout said two separate cases have been registered following the FIR filed by Tarai. The police have seized six trucks bearing Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu registrations in one case and two trucks in another case and detained eight drivers for interrogation. Although the drivers have been detained, the bidder responsible for the Chasikhand sand quarry ghat is yet to be identified, and investigation is on to uncover the full extent of the racket, he said.
Jagatsinghpur district is home to 18 sand ghats (quarries), with three located on Mahanadi river in Raghunathpur tehsil, seven on Mahanadi and Chitrotopla rivers in Tirtol, two on Devi river in Jagatsinghpur, three on Devi river in Biridi, and as many in Naugaon tehsil. Despite a longstanding ban on illegal sand quarrying, the practice continues unabated in several areas. Authorities have conducted a few raids and seized some trucks, tractors, and haulers, but the problem persists.