Drives against illegal sand quarrying start in Balurghat

BALURGHAT: After receiving multiple complaints alleging a group of people indulging in illegal sand quarrying from Atreyee River in the Kumarganj Block, the concerned Block Development Office and Block Land and Land Reforms Office (BLLRO) have already started drives to uproot this menace.

With cases of illegal extraction of sand from Atreyee River on the rise, BLLRO launched an operation on Thursday in Kumarganj Block’s Brahmapur area.

When a group of some people were trying to smuggle sand from the Atreyee, a special team from the BLLRO conducted a raid on the banks of Atreyee after receiving the news. In the raid, a tractor loaded with sand was seized and brought to Kumarganj Police Station. The tractor driver and the workers engaged in sand quarrying are absconding. Warrants have been issued against them. Srivas Biswas, Block Development Officer, Kumarganj said that sand was being extracted illegally from Atreyee at Brahmapur Village and on receiving the news, BLLRO conducted a raid there with the help of Kumarganj Police Station. “The tractor driver and labourers fled. The tractor was brought to Kumarganj Police Station,” he said.

According to him, similar drives would be conducted in the future also.

“We will stop this illegal task of sand quarrying at any cost,” he added.

Uday Shankar Bhattacharya, Kumarganj Block Land and Land Reforms Officer, said: “The accused will be fined and a case will be filed against the tractor owner and others.”