THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Pallichal Panchayat has once again violated directions of the Mining and Geology Department against renewal of quarrying licences at Mookunnimala. Despite clear directions that quarrying should be stopped at Mookunnimala and licences should not be issued, the Panchayat has renewed licences to as many as a dozen quarries in the hill.
The Mining and Geology Department, which conducted an inspection of the quarries on May 22, 23 and 25, had issued notice to all illegal quarries to stop their activities. In the notice, a copy of which was handed over to the Pallichal Panchayat, Pallichal village office and the police, it was clearly stated that no quarry activities should be initiated without the department’s permission.
Even after the Mining and Geology Department issuing such a notice, Pallichal Panchayat had renewed quarrying licence of a dozen quarries on May 30 and the following days.
Meanwhile, Mookunnimala Samrakshana Samithi had submitted a complaint to the Panchayat Director and sought cancellation of all the licences that have been issued and also action against the official who had violated the directions of the Geology and Mining Department. ‘’It was an assistant secretary in the Panchayat who renewed the licence just two days before his retirement. We have demanded that the Panchayat Director should take action against him even though he has retired from service. It was a blatant violation on the part of the official,’’ Samithi joint convenor Surendra Kumar said.
It is also alleged that the former assistant secretary’s son is associated with some quarries, that had led him to take such a step. The Samithi activists have been alleging a nexus between officials, politicians and quarry mafia for a long time. Apart from serving notice on the quarries, the Geology and Mining Department had, in its report to the District Collector, said that all quarry activities in the hill should be stopped. The Department noted that quarry activities were being carried out in lands assigned for rubber cultivation.
As per the rules, the land assigned for a specific purpose could not be used for any other purpose, the report said. Moreover, once the assigned land is used for any other purpose, the ‘pattayam’ should be cancelled. Stating that there were complaints regarding illegal quarrying in ‘puramboke’ lands, a senior geologist, in the report, said that all activities in the region should be stopped as public land has not yet been demarcated.
