Law, no order

A BLOODY attack near Mohali. A Forest Block Officer and his colleague so severely injured that the former is in a critical condition. Yet another black day in the annals of the saga of illegal mining in Punjab. The government officials were merely performing their duty. The assailants have been arrested. Yet the apparent impunity of such persons is alarming. The lure of a quick buck, relatively low investment, “protection” from officials and political leaders, all have served to whip up a sandstorm of corruption and patronage.

Sand is considered a “minor mineral” under the law, and its extraction is governed by the states. The lion’s share of the allotments or auctions is cornered by persons who owe allegiance to the ruling cabal. Indeed, not too long ago, exposure of such a linkage resulted in the eventual resignation of a minister in the Punjab Cabinet. Both over-mining of the allocated lands and unauthorised mining of riverbeds contribute to the illegal supply of sand to an insatiable construction market. Exposures, whether in the media or during a helicopter journey, result in some knee-jerk reactions, some arrests, but no lasting solution. 

Indeed, there is no viable substitute for sand in construction. Even though some alternatives are being explored, these are expensive. More effort needs to be devoted to finding better means of using construction materials. This, however, will take time, and a will that seems to be lacking in the government and the industry. In the meantime, better regulation of the sand-mining industry is an obvious need. Unarmed guards of the forest department are hardly a deterrent against armed criminals. There has to be a proper assessment of the needs of the industry, a determination of how much sand is illegally mined and an effort made to provide sand to the public that is mined legally and is environmentally responsible. In such a scenario, the state exchequer would not be sold short and the customer would get what he wants, even if it comes at a price. Sand mining is a necessity, its illegality is not, and should not be.