Illegal Sand Mining in India

Context:

• The Rajasthan government is planning a special drive to stop illegal sand mining.

What is Illegal Sand Mining?

1. Illegal sand mining is when people take sand from rivers or beaches without government permission.
2. This can harm the environment, affecting rivers and wildlife, and is usually against the law.

Why Sand Mining is done by People?

1. People mine sand mainly for building things like houses, roads, and bridges.
2. Sand is also used in making glass and other products.

What are the Reasons for Illegal Sand Mining in India?

1. Rules aren't Strong Enough:
   1. The punishments for engaging in illegal sand mining are not strong enough.
   2. The existing rules are not implemented effectively.
2. More Building Needs More Sand:
   1. As the country is growing in terms of population as well as urbanisation, there is an increasing demand for sand for construction activities. (Urbanization means more and more people are living in cities, and cities are getting bigger.)
   2. Also, alternatives to river sand like M-sand are not available for people in the market. (M-sand, short for manufactured sand, is a type of sand made by crushing hard granite.).
3. Sand Mafia:
   1. Some organized groups, known as the sand mafia, do illegal mining in rivers.
   2. They take advantage of weak rules to make money from illegal sand extraction.

What problems does illegal sand mining cause?

1. Threat to the ecosystem:
   1. Such mining changes the natural flow of rivers such as by change in the salinity which threatens the life of aquatic species. (Salinity is the amount of salt in water.)
   2. For example, in Tuticorin (Tamil Nadu), seawater has penetrated some villages and the salinity of the groundwater has increased. This has also decreased the population of fish in the nearby region.
2. Coastal erosion:
   1. Coastal erosion is the slow wearing away of land along the coast by waves and tides.
   2. Coastal areas need sand to stay stable and protect against erosion from waves and storms. When people illegally take sand from these areas, it weakens the natural defences, making the coastline more vulnerable to erosion.
   3. The government of Karnataka has already started constructing barriers along the coast to prevent such erosion.
3. Impact on Species:
   1. Such mining to some extent hurts animals like Gangetic dolphins and gharials in the Gangetic river by destroying their homes.
   2. In the coastal region of Odisha, the Olive Ridley Sea Turtles come for nesting but mining destroys their nesting sites. Nesting means animals, such as birds or turtles,  make or find a safe place to lay and hatch their eggs. 
   3. The mining process makes the water cloudy in coastal areas. It is bad for fish because it reduces the oxygen. It also damages coral reefs, which are important homes for many sea creatures.
4. Floods:
   1. Messing with how rivers normally flow and the amount of sediments they carry can make floods more likely. (Sediment is a solid material such as sand or silt that is moved and deposited in a new location by river.)
   2. A report by the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) highlighted that sediment level has decreased by 90% in major rivers of India including the Ganga and Brahmaputra rivers.
5. Economic Costs:
   1. The aesthetic beauty of the river decreases due to sand mining.
   2. It harms the tourism of that region.

What are the Mechanisms present in India to prevent Illegal Sand Mining?

1. Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) Act, 1957: This act has recently been amended in 2023. It specifically mentions that Sand is a minor mineral and the State government is responsible for its mining activities.
2. Environmental Impact Assessment Rules: These rules provide guidelines to protect the environment and manage sand properly. (Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process that looks at how certain activities, like construction or development projects, might affect the environment. It helps to understand and minimize any potential harm to nature before starting a project.)
3. Sustainable Sand Management Guidelines, 2016: These guidelines aim to make sure that sand mining is done in a way that is good for society and the environment.
4. Enforcement and Monitoring Guidelines (2020):
   1. Each State should set up a dedicated team at the district level to conduct River Audits.
   2. The reports of such teams should be uploaded on the website of the state government regularly.       
   3. Transparency should be maintained from the initial stages of sand mining to the final stage of its use by people. It can be done by registering each vehicle carrying sand with the state government and installing GPS in these vehicles.
   4. Technology can be used for surveillance by using night vision drones.
   5. The online sale and purchase of sand should be allowed to support legal sand mining.
   6. A combined team should be created for rivers which border 2 or more states. Because lack of such a combined team leaves an easy loophole for the mafias to run away to other states.
   7. A survey should be conducted to understand the demand and supply of sand for the next 5 years.
   8. The mining should be banned during the monsoon season.

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