CCTV cameras to monitor flow of sand to Kerala
Dakshina Kannada district administration has decided to leave no stones unturned to check the illegal transportation of sand to other states through the district.
Very soon, all check posts will be under CCTV surveillance to monitor the movement of trucks and other heavy vehicles that transport sand illegally. The district administration has commenced the process of tender for the e-procurement of equipment required to implement the surveillance system on all entry points.
Department of mines and geology in-charge deputy director K S Nagendrappa told TOI that they have identified nearly 30 spots in Dakshina Kannada where sand trucks cross the border to reach Kerala illegally. "Deputy commissioner A B Ibrahim has directed us to install CCTV cameras to prevent the illegal transportation of sand to Kerala. Accordingly, we have commenced the tender process through e-procurement. Within 15 days, all the identified points along Karnataka - Kerala border will be equipped with CCTV network," Nagendrappa said.
He said that the responsibility of monitoring truck movements will be given to the police department. "Dakshina Kannada District Task Force on Sand Mining has decided to hand over the responsibility of monitoring CCTV footages to police department. Police will monitor the footages and take action based on the information," he said, aading, there are 242 permit holders to extract sand from 232 acres of sand mining areas in Dakshina Kannada district.
DC Ibrahim recently had issued an order banning illegal transportation of sand to adjacent Kerala through the district. The DC had directed the officers concerned to monitor the strict enforcement of the order and check all kinds of illegal sand movement through the district.
The Karnataka government, in its order dated August 28, 2009, had banned inter-state transportation of sand. The department of mines and geology had seized five vehicles near Thokkottu in Mangaluru on July 10, 2014. It was found during inspection that those vehicles were having permits to transport sand from Nanded district of Maharashtra. However, further verification unearthed the fact that those were fake documents created by the illegal sand transportation lobby. Several such instances of sand being transported to Kerala with fake documents were reported at various places across the district. Following this, the district administration has decided to tighten measures through CCTV surveillance.
Source: The Times of India
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