CUTTACK: Invitation of applications for auction of four sand sources in Budhabalanga river in Mayurbhanj district on the basis of an interim district survey report has come under the scrutiny of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
The NGT’s east zone bench in Kolkata on Friday issued notices to the State government on a petition which alleged that the Tehsildar of Badasahi had given a go by to mandatory norms and invited the applications for auction through an advertisement on March 15 with April 28 as last date for submission of bids.
The bench of Justice B Amit Sthalekar (Judicial Member) and Justice Saibal Dasgupta (Expert Member) directed State counsel Prasenjeet Mohapatra to obtain instructions or file affidavit as to how the letter was issued by the Tehsildar inviting applications for grant of sand mining lease on the basis of an interim district survey report.
Bibekananda Pattnaik filed the petition while advocate Sankar Prasad Pani argued on his behalf. The bench directed for listing of the matter on April 26. The petitioner pointed out that the survey report is not based on ground realities and a joint visit by the Water Resources department officials and the tehsildar, which is mandatory before leasing out sand sources, was not carried out.
The petition also pointed out that the mandatory replenishment study has not been carried out to understand the replenishment rate of sand mining sources to arrest over-exploitation and illegal sand mining. River bank erosion has been observed in the highly dynamic Budhabalanga river.