Rampant illegal sand mining in Mohali's Majri block continues to pose danger to several villages in the area. Media reports indicate that the residents of four villages Khijrabaad, Kubbaheri, Hirdapur and Mianpur Jhangar, among others have been struggling to prevent illegal mining in their region. Rampant mining in the block has reportedly adversely affected the local ecosystem, besides agricultual land, especially owned by mostly impoverished farmers. The wealthy farmers, on the other hand, have allegedly been in cohorts with several miners themselves, renting them tippers to carry out mining. Mining contractors have reportedly even dug up forestland, along with sand hills, in forested areas near these villages, defying the Punjab Land Protection Act. This Act prohibits the use of forestland for commercial purposes. The affected farmers are finding it hard to cultivate the land because the entire area is full of deep pits created by mining activities.
The farmers say they are repeatedly threatened and harassed by the mining mafia for raising their voice. Kadhial Singh, 69, a resident of Mianpur Jhangar village, told the media that the musclemen of the mining contractors beat them up if they raise a finger. We feel ashamed and helpless at the same time that we cannot even protect our land. Whenever we approach any government officer, we are assured of action, but nothing happens on the ground," he said. Allegedly, the contractors have also forced several farmers to sell their land at[ cheaper](http://these contractors force them to sell their land at cheaper rates) rates.
Acting on complaints lodged by the residents of Khijrabaad, Deputy Commissioner Gurpreet Kaur Sapra visited the affected villages in July 2018. She committed to seek a report from the Punjab Pollution Control Board about the crushers operational in the area. Asserting that she had been kept in the dark about the illegal mining, she commented that it is a nexus where many lowerrung employees of government departments and even police might have been involved. Not a single official of any department concerned had informed me about the mining. I will investigate the matter, and also ask the SSP to take action against the erring employees. However, the mining continued unchecked.
In the next two months, eight cases were registered for illegal sand mining under relevant sections of the Mining Act. In five of these cases, the accused were reported to be unknown who fled leaving behind their vehicles. The village residents are not too hopeful of positive police action in the matter because of the past record of the administration in dealing with sand mining.
In December 2020, the police reportedly arrested 16 persons involved in sand mining in the block and seized a .32 bore pistol, one excavator machine and eight vehicles, including five loaded tipper trucks, two sports utility vehicles, a Sorpio and a Safari. Five separate cases were registered at the Majri police station.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Opposition against environmental degradation
Complaint against procedural violations
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand to stop illegal sand mining
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common
Forest, Forest and Non-Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Environmental Laws, Other, Forest and Scheduled Area Governance Laws
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Violation of environmental laws
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Physical attack
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
The farmers say they are repeatedly threatened and harassed by the mining mafia for raising their voice. Kadhial Singh, 69, a resident of Mianpur Jhangar village, told the media that the musclemen of the mining contractors beat them up if they raise a finger
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Majri block
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Deputy Commissioner Gurpreet Kaur Sapra
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Villagers, Farmers, Forest officials, Sand Mafia
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Damandeep is a research scholar in the Department of Political Science, Panjab University, Chandigarh, and Assistant Professor (Political Science) in Trai Shatabdi Guru Gobind Singh Khalsa College, Amritsar. He is interested in understanding the politics of heritage and its impact on contemporary cityscapes. He has completed his Master’s in Political Science from Panjab University.
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