Guwahati, April 6 — A formal complaint has been submitted to the Prime Minister's office seeking an inquiry into alleged illegal extraction of river soil during the construction of an embankment project along the Jhanji River in Jorhat district, Assam.
The petition was filed on Saturday by Diganta Saikia, president of the Amguri Nabanirman Samitee (ANS).
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Saikia alleged that the embankment project — being built under the State Owned Priority Development scheme — involved the unauthorised removal of soil from the riverbed without the required permissions or transit passes.
The project connects National Highway 37 from the Jhanji Bridge at Bonaighat to Tamulichiga, and had been sanctioned with an estimated budget of over Rs 4,477.86 lakh.
According to the complaint, the excavation was carried out in violation of environmental and regulatory norms, posing risks to local residents and causing potential loss of government revenue.
The petitioner went further, alleging that the illegal extraction did not happen in isolation.
The complaint claims the unauthorised excavation took place with indirect support from certain officials, pointing to possible institutional complicity. It also alleged that the activities have led to financial irregularities and the accumulation of assets disproportionate to known sources of income among those involved.
Saikia has urged authorities to take three specific steps: conduct a detailed inquiry into the matter, initiate criminal proceedings against those found responsible, and confiscate properties allegedly linked to the illegal extraction.
The complaint has been directed to the Prime Minister's office, signalling that the petitioner believes the matter requires central-level attention.
At the time the complaint was filed, no official response had been issued by any government authority — state or central — regarding the allegations.
The case adds to a broader pattern of concerns over riverbed mining and embankment project irregularities that have surfaced across Assam in recent years.