Illegal sand mining without permits was affirmed as a significant threat to environmental safety and requires immediate regulatory action.

ORDER

1. Affidavit dated 11.07.2025 has been filed on behalf of the Respondent No.1, Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board ; the same is taken on record.

2. Heard Mr. Dev Aaryan, learned Counsel for the Respondent No.1, Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board ; Ms. Aishwarya Rajyashree, learned Counsel appearing (in Virtual Mode) for the Respondent No.2, Deputy Commissioner/District Magistrate, Hazaribagh ; Ms. Anamika Pandey, learned Counsel appearing (in Virtual Mode) on behalf of the Respondent No.3, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and Mr. Rajib Ray, learned Counsel appearing (in Virtual Mode) on behalf of the Respondent No.4, Central Pollution Control Board.

(Final order of the said case will be uploaded in NGT website by separate sheets of paper)

ORDER

1. This Original Application was registered by the New Delhi Bench of the National Green Tribunal on the basis of a news item titled “Hazaribagh mei nadiyon se avaidh balu khanan kar roj kee kamai 10 lakh se jyada Sarkari adhikariyo kee bhi hai mileebhagat” published in Prabhat Bharat dated 14.12.2023.

2. News item mentions that illegal sand mining is rampant at Keredari village. It mentions that from the River Sayal, Nauvakhap River, Pachda River, Masuriya River and Badki River, illegal sand mining is going on without any obstruction and illegally mined sand is smuggled to various places.

3. It has been alleged that illegal sand mining and smuggling is being done in collusion with concerned officers.

4. News items mentions that illegally mined sand is stored at Garri Khurd premises of Keredari Headquarters, High School Keredari, Dhamhabagi Paniya Garda and near Bakru mode of Keredari.

5. News item further mentions that on account of illegal sand mining, the very existence of River Sayal, Nauvakhap River, Pachda River, Masuriya River and Badki River is in danger.

6. Thereafter, the case has been transferred to the Eastern Zone Bench, Kolkata by the New Delhi Bench vide order dated 12.02.2024 and the same has been re-numbered as Original Application No.45/2024/EZ.

7. At the time of admission, the Tribunal constituted a Committee Fact Finding Committee comprising of the following members:-

(i) RO, MoEF&CC at Ranchi;

(ii) Representative of CPCB; and

(iii) District Magistrate, Hazaribagh

8. The Respondent No.1, Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board, has filed affidavit dated 12.04.2024 stating that a District Task Force (Mining), Hazaribagh, has been set up and the Deputy Commissioner-cum-Chairman of the District Task Force, Hazaribagh, was directed to submit Action Taken Report against illegal sand mining. The Action Taken Report has been submitted vide letter No.345 dated 01.04.2024 and the Action Taken Report has been summarized in tabular form, which reads as under:-

9. It is stated that the Circle Officer, Keredari Circle and Officer-in- Charge of Police Station conducted site inspections of Pachra River, Sayal River, Navakhap River and Mansukhiya River sites to check illegal mining and transportation of sand and necessary vigilance is being kept over these places so that there are no instances of illegal lifting of sand from those sites. It is reported that during inspection, no instances of lifting of illegal sand have been found; inspection w