Sand mafia attacks shocks Kerala administration

Kozhikode district collector and convoy targeted by sand miners on two occasions

Thiruvananthapuram: The sheer audacity with which some illegal river sand miners dared the Kozhikode district administration early on Saturday morning, challenging a team led by the district collector, has shocked the state and called for stringent action to crack down against violators of the law.

Congress leader V.M. Sudheeran brought the matter into the political limelight on Sunday, citing how different mafia gangs were tightening their grip on the state. Sudheeran said it was unfortunate that a situation prevailed where the land mafia, sand mafia and liquor mafia were had exercised a tight grip on the state.

Sudheeran said the administrative mechanisms to control such mafia appeared to be failing and that the attack of the sand mafia against the Kozhikode district collector was an example of the dire situation.

Kozhikode district collector K.V. Mohankumar was targeted by sand miners on two occasions on Saturday morning at 3.30am and 4.30am when he was leading a squad of police and revenue officials to check sand smuggling at Feroke in the city outskirts.

In the first incident, the miners trapped the collector in a narrow lane near Kandikulam with their tipper lorry and dumped the smuggled sand in front of the collector’s car, blocking his path.

Lorry detained

In the second incident, which happened an hour later, a motorbike blocked the collector’s convoy while they were chasing a lorry. The number plate of the bike was faded and the bike sped away. The district officials felt the gang could have been armed. In follow-up action by the police, one lorry has been detained and investigation is on.

The surprise raid at night by a team led by the collector was undertaken following complaints that the sand mafia had been mining and smuggling sand from the Kadalundi river in collusion with some government officials.

Home minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan said stringent action will be taken against the culprits.

Kerala’s construction sector has boomed over the past decade, making river sand a virtual treasure for construction. This, in turn, has attracted armed gangs into illegal mining of sand from river frontages.