A CORRESPONDENT
BOKAKHAT: Under the jurisdiction of the Golaghat Regional Forest Office, illegal sand mining is being carried out extensively in the Numaligarh and Bakiyal forest ranges by a section of sand mafias, who are mercilessly excavating sand from the beds of the Kaliyani-Dhansiri and Daigrong rivers. Day and night, this illegal mining is being conducted using excavators and other modern machinery. This has not only destroyed the natural characteristics of the rivers but has also pushed local biodiversity into a severe crisis.
Although permits have reportedly been issued for only three mining zones, illegal sand extraction is continuing at more than 12 locations within the Numaligarh Forest Range alone.
Local residents allege that a section of corrupt forest officials are directly involved in this entire illegal operation and are providing protection to the sand mafia. As a result, the Forest Department is allegedly turning a blind eye despite being fully aware of the situation.
For a long time now, large-scale illegal sand trading has been going on in areas such as Chaniaghat, Bandarghat, Bogamati, Kanaighat along the Kaliyani river, and Parbatipur, Bakiyal and Nagakata along the Daigrong river. Locals have alleged that hundreds of sand-laden trucks pass through forest checkpoints every day after paying cash bribes, without any obstruction.
In the interest of environmental protection, the Golaghat District Committee of the Assam Tea Labour Adivasi Congress submitted a written complaint to the Bakiyal Forest Range Office. In the complaint signed by the organization's president, Tarun Mahanta, it was stated that tea garden workers are being forcibly taken to the riverbanks and made to engage in mechanical sand extraction work. As a result, many workers have been seriously injured and several have even lost their lives.
Despite receiving these allegations and evidence, the concerned forest officials have reportedly failed to take any effective action. The silence of the department in the face of such grave issues involving environmental destruction and threat to workers' lives has been termed extremely alarming by concerned local citizens, who have voiced their concerns before the media.
Meanwhile, environmental experts from the region have warned that if illegal sand mining is not stopped immediately, both rivers may soon move towards ecological death. Although the public has repeatedly demanded that the Forest Department take strict action to stop illegal sand transportation, what steps the department will take in the coming days remains to be seen.
Also Read: Rampant illegal sand mining continues in Loharghat amid allegations of official collusion