CRZ sand extraction: DC issues orders for disbursing temporary permits

Mangaluru:  Dakshina Kannada district administration has issued temporary permits for traditional sand mining on the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) of rivers of the district.

Deputy Commissioner Ravikumar M R, as chairman of the District CRZ Committee, issued orders for giving temporary permits to 54 individuals and communities who had applied for engaging in traditional sand mining activities to lift sand from dunes on the CRZ areas of Phalguni and Nethravati rivers.

In May this year, National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) Southern Bench in Chennai, had halted large-scale commercial sand extraction (sand mining) along the Karnataka coast.

In its order concerning a petition from Udupi, NGT said that sand bars could be removed only by the local community using traditional methods.

NGT had further said that sand can be extracted only to enable the safe movement of fishing boats. It also prohibited the sale of extracted sand in the market but allowed its use for nourishing beaches, river beds, or river banks.