THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The district administration’s report stating no quarrying activities have been going on in poramboke lands drew flak from the environmentalists and anti quarry organisations. They alleged the report is not factual and lacked transparency.
After the incident at Marayamuttom in which two workers were killed, Deputy Collector (LR) V Vinodh was directed to investigate the functioning of illegal quarries in the district and to find whether any of them were operating on poramboke land.
In his report on the quarries in Marayamuttom and Peringidavila region, the deputy collector said no quarries are operating on the poramboke lands. However, the environmentalists and anti-quarry organisations alleged the report was prepared without conducting a proper survey. According to them, the report was made without looking into the ground reality.
Pointing out the report on all quarries will be submitted within three weeks, Vinodh said no quarry activities are going on in the poramboke lands as per the survey report of the Neyyattinkara tahsildar. “The survey in the region was done via Total Station Survey mechanism. The report is also based on available survey records,” he said.
Refuting the allegations that proper survey and ground level inspections were not done before preparing the report, he said, “What they say is not true. The report was prepared based on scientific survey and the records.” A comprehensive report on all quarries will be submitted after the meeting of quarry owners which is to be held on January 10, he added.
Contrary to the claims of the deputy collector, Thanal Vedi and Western Ghat Protection Ekopana Samithi (organisations that have been fighting against illegal quarry activities in the region) said the report was prepared without conducting any proper survey activities.
Questioning the report, Western Ghat Protection Ekopana Samithi convenor Shaji Peringadavila said quarrying is going on in about three hectares of leased land in the region. “These leased lands are owned by the government. So how can the deputy collector say no quarry activity is going on in poramboke lands? The report also does not say how much rock has been blasted. Earlier, it was reported the probe will look into the licences these quarry owners obtained.
The report does not mention anything about this,” he said. Meanwhile, Thanalvedi general secretary S Unnikrishnan said quarry activities are going on the canal poramboke (part of Neyyar Irrigation Project) and the revenue land. “It is quite a paradox the survey officials have not come across these poramboke lands. In some of these poramboke lands the quarry owners have planted trees to dupe the district administration,” he said.
Unnikrishnan claimed quarry activities have been going on in about three hectares in Block 26 of Peringadavila village and also in Sasthanpara Hills at Kunnathukal. “Also, the High Court order regarding the demarcation of poramboke land in the region is yet to be implemented,” he said.
Both the leaders said the survey was conducted in a secret way and no one had been told about it. They alleged the survey was held only to create a smokescreen.