Dept conducts raid against illegal quarrying
Monday, 26 March 2018 | PNS | Ramnagar-
The forest department seized about one dozens vehicles involved in illegal quarrying on the Kosi riverbed here on Sunday. Taking action on the directions of the chief conservator of forests (western circle) Parag Madhukar Dhakate, the department staff managed to seize the vehicles though the persons involved in the illegal activity managed to escape from the scene. The Forest Department teams continued to search for the culprits till late in the evening but they managed to give the officials the slip. During the raid conducted by the department, a drone mounted camera was also used to record the illegal activity against which action was taken.
Dhakate informed that the department had been receiving complaints for some days now about illegal quarrying being carried out on the Kosi riverbed. On Sunday, the department formed a team of officials from Haldwani, Terai East, Terai Central, Terai East and Ramnagar forest divisions along with a district administration team headed by Tehsildar Priyanka Negi along with the police raided locations to clamp down on illegal quarrying activities on the riverbed. The official teams simultaneously raided the Kathiya bridge on Kosi and gates at Khadanja, Banjari and Kalusiddh. The officials began checking the vehicles transporting minor minerals quarried from the riverbed at these locations. The checking of vehicles caused some panic among those indulging in illegal quarrying. They attempted to flee from the scene in their vehicles but the official teams prevented the vehicles carrying the illegally quarried materials from being taken away. The Tehsildar Priyanka Negi informed that two vehicles were seized at Kathiya bridge due to anomalies found in their operation. The forest department sub divisional officer Kalam Singh Bisht informed that 11 vehicles were seized with illegally quarried materials while three were seized for being overloaded with quarried minor minerals. The department and district administration had taken the action following repeated complaints received about the illegal quarrying on the riverbed, added the sub divisional officer.
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