Indora MLA Malender Rajan flags ‘blackmailing’ of stone crusher owners

Alleging that some stone crusher owners were being blackmailed on the pretext of illegal mining in the Indora Assembly constituency in Kangra district, MLA Malender Rajan has said the practice would not be allowed to continue in the area.

Addressing the media in Indora last evening, Rajan said for the past some time he had been receiving complaints of blackmailing from some stone crusher owners.

He said it was the responsibility of the state government to protect the interests of entrepreneurs who were carrying out mining in a legalised manner. At the same time, he added, illegal mining should not be allowed at any cost.

The Indora MLA alleged that some people with vested interests were trying to blackmail stone crusher owners who were operating in the area by fulfilling all government norms and formalities.

He said he had raised the issues of illegal mining, green felling and drug peddling in his Assembly constituency, which is close to the Himachal-Punjab border, in the Monsoon Session of the Vidhan Sabha.

Rajan said the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led government had issued instructions to the authorities concerned to take strict action against mining and drug mafias in the state.

“As a result, the police launched a drive against the mafias in the inter-state border areas, which brought illegal activities under control in the Indora Assembly constituency,” he asserted.

It may be recalled that recently, Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) spokesperson Manmohan Katoch, who also hails from Indora, had alleged that the area had become a hub of illegal mining due to alleged collusion of the state Mining Department.

Katoch had demanded a high-level probe into assets amassed by some department officials by allegedly allowing illegal mining in the area.