Haryana charges 6 officials over illegal Aravalli mining in Nuh
The officials named in the government communique include Assistant Mining Officer R.S. Thakran and Mining Officers Bhupender Singh, BD Yadav, Rajender Prasad, Anil Kumar, and Anil Atwal.
The probe, ordered by Commissioner and Secretary, Mines and Geology, T.L. Satya Prakash, found that around 25 acres of Aravalli hill land in Haryana's revenue territory had been illegally mined by leaseholders from Rajasthan. The excavation spanned from November 2011 to January 2025, resulting in the loss of over 80 lakh tonnes of Aravalli stone.
'While taking strict cognisance of the illegal mining activities, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has directed that six officers of the Mining Department be charge-sheeted. He has also ordered action against staff from the Panchayat and Forest Departments found complicit in the case,' the state government said in a statement.
The crackdown follows a complaint alleging excess extraction in Rawa village, located in Ferozepur Jhirka tehsil. Subsequent departmental investigations confirmed the illegal operations.
Despite multiple attempts, Satya Prakash and director general of Mining, Pandurang did not respond to HT's request for a comment.
Environmental activists have long flagged unchecked mining in fragile Aravalli zones like Nuh, warning of severe ecological consequences. A senior official, requesting anonymity, said the Rawa case could be 'just the tip of the iceberg', with more action expected in the coming weeks.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
2 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
As floods ravage temples, will govt heed to ancient wisdom?
If the planners wish to follow ancient wisdom, then the Ganga and other rivers have decided their territory for them to earmark, and not encroach. Rituals being performed after the Ganga entered the bade hanuman temple in Prayagraj. (HT File Photo) According to the Brihaddharma Purana (Page 322), four days before Janmashtami, the extent of water of the Ganga should be considered as its womb, Nadi Garbha. The river flows at its peak (in general) and defines the river corridor. The two-kos kshetra (about six kilometres) all around the river bank is the floodplain devoid of all sins and no activity should be allowed in this flow path, according to the religious text. Would planners follow their own scriptures to avert disaster in a state headed by a monk chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who is passionately pursuing his dream project of building religious circuits and corridors in Uttar Pradesh. Environmentalists feel the CM, well-versed in scriptures, would understand the need to follow ancient wisdom. While announcing a 30,000-crore master plan for Mathura, CM had said the 'double-engine' government was committed to uninterrupted flow of a clean and pure Yamuna. Significantly, on March 21, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) while hearing a case on the demarcation of flood plain zone of Yamuna falling in Delhi from Wazirabad to Palla (a stretch of 22 km) had ruled: 'The river Yamuna being tributary of Ganga, the floodplain corresponding to its greatest flow or with a flood frequency once in 100 years, is required to be demarcated.' The river's fury spares none Close to the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga, the Yamuna and mythical Saraswati in Prayagraj, stands the majestic Allahabad Fort, built by Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1583, where one of the oldest temples of Vishnu, Patalpuri, is situated. This underground temple is never submerged by floods. On the other side of the Sangam, there is a famous Hanuman temple. It is perhaps the only temple in the world in which the idol of Hanuman is in a reclining position. The idol is 20 feet long and about 8 to 10 feet below the surface. The idol gets partially submerged every monsoon and is completely inundated during the floods. Legend describes the inundation of the idol as 'the bathing of Hanuman by the holy Ganga'. Hence, devotees consider it as auspicious. They assemble there on the first day the water enters the temple and welcome it with chants. However, when the temple is completely submerged and is inoperative, a smaller idol of Hanuman is placed at a safer place for daily prayers. Perhaps, for this reason, the authorities have never planned any fortification of the temple to protect it from floods, though it was renovated before the Mahakumbh early this year. The environmentalists, however, suggest flood protection measures for the temple and its statue as the rain pattern is changing along with the intensity of the floods. Religious Circuits January 22, 2025 was a special day for chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who led his team of about 50 ministers to the Mahakumbh for a special cabinet meeting in the Mela area. The cabinet took a holy dip at the Sangam and later a beaming chief minister announced several projects, including the development of a religious circuit of seven districts of Eastern UP, comprising Varanasi, Prayagraj, Jaunpur, Chandauli, Gazipur, Mirzapur and Bhadohi; five of them have the Ganga flowing close by. The chief minister said the Mahakumbh had opened five spiritual tourism corridors namely Prayagraj-Mirzapur-Kashi, Prayagraj-Gorakhpur, Prayagraj- Chitrakoot, Prayagraj-Lucknow-Naimisharanya and Prayagraj-Mathura-Vrindavan. The religious city of Chitrakoot is facing a flood-like situation with the Mandakini river damaging several temples on its banks. Similarly, several temples on the banks of Yamuna in Mathura get impacted by floods. The government is also working on the Mathura corridor project on the lines of Kashi Vishwanath corridor. In all, the plan is to develop about 12 spiritual circuits in the state as religious tourism is the latest money-spinner after the Kashi corridor, Ayodhya and Mahakumbh fetched the state millions. What the environmentalists are saying But, is anybody listening to the environmentalists who had raised concern over the pollution of the Ganga-Yamuna after millions arrived at Kumbh and left filth on the banks. The Mela area is beyond recognition today as the Ganga and the Yamuna have inundated a large expanse of the area, submerging the temporary and semi- temporary structures that were raised there for the Mahakumbh. While the officials believe the initiative to develop a religious circuit of seven districts would help in the preservation of temples, rituals, and traditions, ensuring that the region's cultural heritage remained intact amid modernisation, the environmentalists, who have been emphasising on green temples and blue landscapes, have a different take as they worry about the health of rivers and their ecosystem. They quote scriptures to prove their point. 'Indian religious traditions regard all rivers as sacred. The Rig Veda and other ancient Veda collections lavish praise on such holy rivers as the Yamuna, the Saraswati, the Indus, and the Ganges. No ceremony, from birth to death, is seen by Hindus as complete and perfect without Gangajal, or water of the Ganges. A number of annual Hindu religious bathing fairs and festivals are held on the banks of the Ganges, including Somwati Amavasya, Kartik Poornima, Shravan Poornima and Ganga Dussehra,' states the Alliance of Religious Consecration (ARC) and the Bhumi Project in its Guide for Green Hindu Temples. Significantly, major temples in the country have started focusing on following ecological footprints to the extent possible like use of solar energy and ban on plastic in the complex. Shiva Temples Historically, Shiva temples were constructed either on or near the river bank for two reasons – the association of Shiva with the Ganga and the sacredness of rivers. However, thousands of these small and big temples get damaged or are swept away by floods. On August 15, an ancient temple was swept away by the Sharda river. As the river changes its course, some Shivalingas are recovered too. In Shahjahanpur, water has to be pumped out for devotees to offer their prayers in Sunasirnath temple on the banks of Gomti. Venkatesh Dutta, professor of environmental sciences at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow, has earned the sobriquet of riverman because of his passionate campaign for treating 'rivers as living beings.' 'There are thousands of Shiva temples on the river banks, and many Shivalingas have been damaged or submerged in floods,' he says. He also says that originally temples were built on river banks and the offerings also came from local vegetation. Dutta appeals for no change in the land use of the floodplains as the rivers decide their own territory. Instead, pillars should be put up to earmark the land of the river and its encroachment should be non-negotiable. No NOCs Thus, while developing religious corridors and circuits, it is important to involve environmentalists as engineers lack both knowledge and sensitivities involved or they are not guided by ecosystems. Often, the practice of taking an NOC from the environment department has become a routine exercise. As Prof Dutta says, ' Saving rivers would save habitats, including ancient temples. Even development of the river fronts such as 'rejuvenation' and short-term planning were detrimental to the health of rivers. That's ancient wisdom !
Hindustan Times
4 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
How key routes via UER-II and Dwarka Expressway will help commuters in Delhi-NCR and beyond
Key road routes cutting traffic congestion and travel time opened on Sunday in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) — the Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II) and two sections of the Dwarka Expressway. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated these on Sunday. An official briefs PM Narendra Modi and road transport minister Nitin Gadkari about the new routes; CMs Rekha Gupta and Nayab Singh Saini, of Delhi and Haryana respectively, are also seen. (HT Photo) What's UER-II and why it matters The Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II) will ease traffic on Delhi's Inner and Outer Ring Roads, besides congestion points such as Mukarba Chowk and Dhaula Kuan, and on the NH-09. UER-II measures 75.7 kilomeres and is essentially designed as Delhi's third Ring Road. It will thus provide direct access to Bahadurgarh and Sonipat in Haryana from west and south Delhi. For commuters on the Delhi-Chandigarh route, and further, this will cut travel time. For industry, this will prove to be a major boost, bringing down cost of transport within the National Capital Region and beyond. According to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), these four packages of UER-II connect Mahipalpur near the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, Delhi, to Alipur in North Delhi, linking up with routes to Haryana, Punjab and further. It is part of a corridor that will in future connect five major NCR expressways: Delhi-Dehradun, Delhi-Meerut, Noida-Greater Noida, DND-Faridabad, and Yamuna Expressway. Of the UER-II, 54.21 km is in Delhi and 21.5 km in Haryana. The project cost is ₹ 6,445 crore. How will Dwarka Expressway's newly-opened sections help? Phases three and four of the Dwarka Expressway were also opened by PM Modi at the function in Rohini on Sunday afternoon.
Time of India
6 hours ago
- Time of India
Hunt for missing 17-year-old Hannah Osborn intensifies; mysterious car spotted near home sparks conspiracy theories
In a tragic incident, a 17-year-old girl from Bradford, Hannah Osborn, has been missing for over a week after she was last seen leaving her father's home in Jackson County on Saturday night. Her disappearance has left the family deeply concerned, and they are desperate for answers. Her parents worry about foul play being involved and are urging anyone with information to come forward as the search intensifies. She was last seen on August 10, 2025. Hannah's father has also issued a desperate plea as a search is underway for his daughter. According to HT, the family of the missing is speculating that she may have met someone on Snapchat and cites that foul play could be involved. Hunt for Hannah intensifies after a conspiracy theory surfaces According to The Mirror US, Hannah's father said, 'She's beautiful. She's caring. She has a big heart and is just beautiful on the inside and out. She's a great person. We just want our daughter back. We would like to have her back home. But more importantly, I just need to know she's alive and okay." Hannah's missing matters because the news came just after another teenage girl failed to return home after going swimming and was later found dead. The late girl's father explained that his daughter used to be active on Snapchat and had met up with people with whom she used to speak on the messaging app in the past. 'She's had problems with being on that Snapchat and meeting people out of town and things, but Hannah has always come home,' he said. Car conspiracy theory: Vehicles spotted outside Hannah's house The Mirror US report further noted that according to Hannah's father, Osborn was last seen at 7:40 on Saturday night at her father's home near County Road Seven. Following this, "There were some vehicles spotted on my road about the time that she left," he added. "It leads me to believe there might be some foul play, some drug activity around my neighbourhood." However, Osborn's parents are not really sure which vehicle she got into or if she got into one at all. They are trying to follow up on all leads as they desperately try to find answers. Osborn's missing case reignites the mission to raise awareness about missing children Colleen Nick, Director and CEO of the Morgan Nick Foundation, addressed Hannah Osborn's disappearance, drawing from her own experience after her daughter was abducted in 1995. She's since dedicated her life to advocating for missing children. Nick urged anyone with information to reach out, emphasising the need to ensure Hannah is safe, supported, and knows her loved ones want to hear from her.
