HYDERABAD: Despite persistent complaints by locals living in the Godavari river basin area about illegal sand mining, not a single formal complaint has been lodged with the Telangana Pollution Control Board (TGPCB), the Centre informed Parliament on Monday.
In a reply to a starred question raised by Warangal MP Kadiyam Kavya, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change stated that there is no record of any complaint regarding illegal sand mining along the Godavari riverbank in the erstwhile Warangal district.
It also confirmed that no specific study has been undertaken by the inistry on the environmental impact of such mining in the region.
The ministry clarified that the regulation and monitoring of minor minerals such as sand fall under the purview of state governments as per the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
While the Centre has issued various guidelines, including the Sustainable Sand Mining Guidelines (2016) and Enforcement & Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining (2020), their implementation is the responsibility of the states.
No plan submitted by Telangana under GIM
On afforestation under the Green India Mission (GIM), the ministry revealed that Telangana has not submitted the required perspective plan, and hence no projects under this mission have been taken up in Warangal.
Addressing concerns about environmental conservation, especially around Pakhal Lake and Wildlife Sanctuary, the ministry listed several measures being undertaken by the Telangana Forest department.
These include: retrieval of encroached forest land, prosecution under the Telangana Forest Act, 1967, plantation activities in retrieved areas,
regular patrolling to prevent poaching and encroachments, awareness programmes in the sanctuary and a strict ban on plastic use in eco-tourism zones around Pakhal An amount of `2.74 crore has been allocated for eco-restoration works at Pakhal under the Harithanidhi scheme. Water samples from the lake are being collected monthly as part of the National Water Monitoring Programme, the Ministry added,
However, the ministry said no funds were allocated to Telangana under its central eco-tourism scheme in the past year or the current one, as the state’s proposals were not received.