The duty of the State to protect and improve natural resources, and the serious environmental impact of sand mining.

This is a petition under Section 12 of the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971 to punish respondents 1 to 4 in the contempt application for wilful disobedience of orders of this Court dated 8-2-2000 in W.P.No.985/2000 on the following allegations:

The main writ petition is for a mandamus directing respondents 1 to 4 to perform their statutory duty and obligations to stop illicit, illegal and unauthorised quarrying of sand and savudu from the river-bed and river bank of Kusasthalai River and the adjacent patta lands in Jagannathapuram and Inam Agaram villages, Ponneri Taluk, Tiruvallur District.

2. Respondents 1 to 4 have filed a common counter affidavit sworn to by the first respondent herein. The sixth respondent, a private individual has also filed his counter. The petitioner has filed a reply affidavit.

3. Pending the writ petition, the petitioner sought the appointment of an Advocate commissioner to inspect the river-bed, river bank, check dam, embankments, etc. and to file a detailed report about the illegal activity going on perpetually. This Court appointed an Advocate Commissioner and the Advocate Commissioner has also filed a detailed report along with some photographs.

4. In the said report, he has stated as follows:

The petitioner identified the check-dam on the River Kusasthalai and the same was identified with reference to the field measurement sketch furnished by the Village Administrative Officer. The agricultural fields identified by the petitioner and confirmed by the Village Administrative Officer with reference to F.M. Book are lying north to the said river bed and bank. From the check-dam he proceeded towards west. He found innumerable lorry tyre marks on the sand track. Such tyre marks are so innumerable that one could conclude that a number of lorries were passing and re-passing for a number of days, though no truck or lorry was found in the places of his inspection. A protective embankment provided by the Government was damaged by the removal of sand, savudu and clay. Gravel stones were found displaced and scattered. He took photographs of the said embankment, which is to the north of River Kusasthalai. From the top of the embankment earth has been excavated to a depth of 13.6 metres. He proceeded further east of check dam towards a burial ground. The earth excavated at that place was 50 metres wide and the depth is 8 metres. Erosion was found to be to a length of 216.6 metres in Field S.No.432 called odai poramboke and in Field S.No.434 to a length of 93.8 metres and 120.8 metres to a depth of 11 metres on an average. There were several pits in the river bed further east of the check dam. In Field S.No.436, there is a big pit with some water in an area of about 100 metres x 55 metres to a depth of 15 metres. The petitioner pointed out an excavation of sand, which had been piled up for being transported. In Field S.No.429 close to the patta land, which is stated to be river poramboke, earth has been excavated to a depth of 12.5 metres throughout a length of 40 metres and a width of 29.4 metres. The petitioner told the Advocate Commissioner that due to indiscriminate quarrying of earth from the adjacent river bed and river bank as also patta land, there was erosion in his own private lands and he had to level the land by using bulldozers. The Commissioner himself found that earth in the above field had been eroded from its boundaries up to the natural embankment of the river to a length of 36 metres, width of 86 metres and depth of 8.2 metres. Excavated earth was found lying in Field S.Nos.13/13 and 437 to a length of 32 metres, width of 40 metres and depth of 9 metres. There were clear traces of lorries having plied in the fields as there were visible tyre marks on all the fields up to the area of quarrying till the river bed. Close to Field S.Nos.311/9, 3, 4 and 11 and 437 there was a burial ground, where earth was found to be removed to a length of 60 metres by 50 metres extending to a width of 54.5 m