Chandigarh: Punjab and Haryana high court has directed the CBI to conduct a preliminary inquiry into alleged illegal mining in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district, observing that the authorities responsible had “utterly failed to carry out their responsibilities”.




A division bench of Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor passed the directions recently on a petition filed by Rahul Manchanda seeking an independent investigation into alleged large-scale illegal mining. The petitioner alleged connivance of officials of the department of mines and geology and the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB).




The HC directed the CBI to “ensure that a detailed drone survey is carried out and 3D satellite imagery is obtained from Google Earth/ISRO or any other credible source, so that periodic changes that have occurred in the area can be clearly ascertained”.




The court allowed the agency to seek assistance from the district administration, department of mines and geology, any expert body or a department of the Union ministry. It clarified that all expenses would be borne by the Punjab govt. The CBI was asked to submit its report in a sealed cover on the next date of hearing on Dec 7.




The directions followed a report submitted by the chief judicial magistrate-cum-secretary of the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Hoshiarpur, after the court ordered an inspection of the sites.




“Having perused the materials placed before us, and after taking into consideration the report of the secretary, DLSA, we are prima facie convinced that the authorities concerned, who were required to ensure the prevention of such large-scale and rampant illegal mining, have utterly failed to carry out their responsibilities. The allegations of collusion of the state authorities with the persons responsible for such large-scale destruction of the ecology, therefore, cannot be brushed aside lightly,” the bench observed.




The Sept 14 DLSA report confirmed allegations of large-scale mining in 17 villages, including Sandhwal, Naushahra Simbli, Dewal, Sariana, Waziran, Godho, Bringli, Dhulal, Bhatehar, Dhol Kalota, Alera, Amroh, Basantpur, Asifpur, Jugial, Parelian and Siparian.




Mining depths at various sites ranged from 20 to 110 feet. The depths could not be ascertained at some sites because the pits were filled with water and access was difficult. The report also stated that efforts had been made to mislead the DLSA team and that information regarding its visit appeared to have been leaked.




Extracting from the report, the HC noted that crushers were established at several sites, but no workers were found there. Heavy vehicles and machinery, including trucks, tippers and JCBs, were parked at some sites, suggesting that operations had been halted after the operators learnt of the inspection.




The report also recorded that boards displaying the names, registration or licence particulars and GST registration certificates of the crushers were not found.




The HC noted that the state govt had earlier stated that none of the approved commercial mining sites, landowner mining sites or crusher mining sites in Hoshiarpur was operational. However, an affidavit filed by the district mining officer stated that 31 stone crushers were registered in the district, of which 26 were operational. The court said no credible information had been placed before it regarding the source of raw material for the crushers.




“Keeping in view the larger public interest involved... we deem it appropriate that a detailed and thorough inquiry should be carried out by an independent agency,” the bench said.