Sand Row: MLA Raghupathi Bhat begins Indefinite Dharna against District Administration
Udupi: The indefinite dharna began in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s Office here from October 25 led by Raghupathi Bhat MLA Udupi against the district administration for failing to resolve the issue of sand extraction in the district.
Speaking on the occasion K. Raghupati Bhat, said that the district administration was not interested in solving the problem of sand extraction in the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) and non-CRZ areas in the district. Though Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy had ordered for the sand to be made available from October 15, it had still not been implemented in Udupi district.
Deputy Commissioner Priyanka Mary Francis is only bothered about the guidelines of the National Green Tribunal and the officers are needlessly complicating the issue. “If DC Priyanka Mary Francis cannot resolve the problem, the government should transfer her and get a new Deputy Commissioner who can deal with the issue,” he said.
The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) had stated that the seven-member panel under the Deputy Commissioner should take all decisions with regard to the removal of sand.
“Only the illegal sand extracting lobby and the M-sand lobby are benefiting from the delay in allowing the extraction of sand,” he said.