JAGATSINGHPUR: The Steel and Mines department on Saturday suspended Jagatsinghpur district mining officer (DMO) Satish Kumar Tarai for alleged negligence of duty, disobedience of official orders, nexus with the sand mafia and involvement in corrupt practices.
Jagatsinghpur collector J Sonal had issued show-cause notices to the DMO and deputy director of Minor Minerals of Jajpur Jaya Prakash Nayak for their alleged failure to conduct raids on illegal sand quarries. The action followed a raid at the Kilipal sand quarry under Tirtol police limits on November 25, which exposed large-scale illegal sand mining resulting in significant revenue loss.
However, neither Nayak nor Satish responded to the notices. Subsequently, the collector wrote to the additional chief secretary of Steel and Mines department, seeking disciplinary action against Satish. Acting on the recommendation, the department suspended him on Saturday.
It may be recalled that due to the alleged negligence of mining officials, a joint enforcement team led by DIG (Central Range) Satyajit Nayak, along with the collector and SP Ankit Verma, conducted a late-night raid on November 25 last year, at the Kilipal sand quarry under Tirtol tehsil. The raid exposed massive unauthorised sand extraction and multiple violations of the Odisha Minor Mineral Concession (OMMC) Rules, 2023, causing an estimated loss of `15.28 crore to the exchequer. As many as 46 Hyva trucks and three chain-mounted excavators were seized, and six drivers were arrested.
Meanwhile, the collector on Friday issued a show-cause notice to the inspector-in-charge of Tirtol police station Pradipta Sethy and withheld his salary for reportedly releasing seized sand-laden vehicles in violation of an Orissa High Court order.
A raid was conducted by sub-collector Prasant Kumar Tarai on December 11 at the Jaipur sand quarry on the Mahanadi river under Tirtol police limits. The quarry is leased to Bansidhar Swain. During the operation, 22 Hyva trucks and two excavators were seized after excess sand mining beyond the permissible limit was detected, resulting in revenue loss and ecological damage. Following the lodging of an FIR by the Mining Officer, Jagatsinghpur, the seized vehicles were handed over to the IIC of Tirtol police station.
Subsequently, some vehicle owners filed writ petitions before the Orissa High Court seeking release of their vehicles. The high court directed the vehicle owners to approach the concerned authorities, including the IIC, sub-collector or mining officer, along with the required documents for release of the vehicles as per law.
However, it was found that when the vehicle owners approached the IIC, Sethy reportedly released the seized vehicles unilaterally, despite the sub-collector not signing any release order.
When contacted, the collector confirmed that the DMO has been suspended, while no suspension has yet been ordered against Nayak.