KOCHI: The shortage of sand in the state is likely to worsen as a government authority has not permitted district administrations to issue licences for river sand mining. A three-month annual ban on sand mining enforced during the monsoon season has expired. According to sources in the construction sector, the contractors are finding it hard to survive and some of them resorted to fraudulent practices like using saline/low quality sand to overcome the shortage.
The district administration attributes the delay in opening sand ghats to failure of the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) in issuing clearances for sand mining activities. “The order to stop mining was issued on June 30 by the SEIAA. Normally the ban period would have ended in three months. But since the SEIAA has not given the clearance, resumption of sand mining would be delayed,” said M G Rajamanickam, Ernakulam District Collector. P Viswanath, general secretary of Government Contractors Joint Action Council said that government fixes the price of river sand every year, but the commodity is sold at double the rate in open market. “The price of sand would continue to go up unless the availability of the material increases in the state. With new regulation from Union government, the situation would become worse. It is true that some contractors have used low quality sand including saline sand,” he said.
Though the government fixed the price of sand at Rs 12 for a cubic feet, it is being sold at around Rs 20-Rs 30 for a cubic feet. “Around five years ago, the price of the sand in local market was only Rs 10 for a cubic feet,” he said.
Environmentalist C N Joy said the use of saline sand would harm the coastal ecology and prove dangerous for the safety of buildings. “To check the illegal sand mining from the coastal areas, the government should ensure that sufficient sand is brought to Kerala for the construction.
At present there is legislation only for mining from river and the government is yet to come out with a law to ban mining from the coastal areas,” Joy said. Construction companies shifted to less expensive manufactured sand from crusher units once the cost of river sand became too hot to handle. The manufactured sand costs around Rs 15-Rs 18 per cubic feet. Sand mixed with cement brought from neighbouring states are also being used for construction purpose. T S Ashok, managing director, Artech Builders, said that now Tamil Nadu is supplying quality sand mixed with cement. It is not possible to transport sand from any other states and the only option is to bring it as another product.
“The sand mixed with cement from other states will cost 30 per cent higher than the traditional mix done here in Kerala. However, when the overall cost of the project is considered it will be six per cent higher, which is affordable,” Ashok said.