Illegal mining scandal rocks Moga under the 'jihda khet usdi reat' scheme

A major crackdown on illegal sand mining has been launched in Moga's Dharamkot subdivision, where the state government’s flood relief initiative, "jihda khet ussdi reat", is being misused for commercial gain.

Police have registered multiple cases and booked at least eight individuals after the Mining Department detected unauthorised extraction under the guise of land restoration.

The scheme, intended to help flood-affected farmers clear sand and silt from their agricultural land along the Satluj River, has become a cover for a lucrative black market operation.

Following severe flooding two months ago, which deposited thousands of acres of sand in fields adjoining the Satluj, the Punjab government granted flood-hit landowners a special exemption: they could lift and sell the accumulated material without a permit or No-Objection Certificate (NOC) until December 31, 2025.

The district administration has notified 29 such villages in the Dharamkot area.

However, authorities are now finding that individuals are exploiting this relaxation, extracting sand from non-affected land and even commercial mining sites.

Moga Deputy Commissioner, Sagar Setia, said the exemption is strictly for the rehabilitation of farmlands, warning that any extraction that damages the original field surface or creates trenches will be treated as illegal mining.

"The relaxation is only for rehabilitating farmlands and not for commercial mining," DC Setia clarified. "Any violation of these directions will be treated as an illegal activity".

The district Mining Department, along with Moga Police, has acted against some violators. During an inspection near the Satluj River, officials caught four people illegally extracting sand from a notified commercial mining site in violation of the scheme's terms on October 26.

In two other cases, FIRs were registered against four people on Sunday following a complaint by Anubhav Singh Sirodia, Junior Engineer-cum-Mining Inspector in Chak Jindra village and Chak Taarewala village of Dharamkot sub-division. Interestingly, the launch of the 'jihda khet usdi reat' scheme has had a significant impact on the market, with reports suggesting a steep 30-35 per cent fall in sand prices across the region within just two weeks of its introduction. While this is positive for consumers and construction, it underscores the massive demand and potential profits that drive illegal extraction. Sagar Setia said all Sub-Divisional Magistrates and the District Mining Officer have been directed to intensify monitoring and ensure that no unauthorized extraction takes place beyond the notified flood-affected fields.

The district administration is determined to stop the scheme, designed to bring relief, from being exploited by the mining mafia.