Civil contractors urge government to address scarcity of sand, laterite stone in Dakshina Kannada
Association president Mahabala Kottari stated that contractors were unable to procure quality sand from Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) areas due to legal hurdles. For a month, the police and district officials have restricted the supply of laterite stone extracted from patta lands. The police have also prevented the supply of laterite stone coming from other districts in the State and from Kerala, Mr. Kottari alleged.
Apart from construction labourers, the lives of those relying on the extraction and supply of sand and laterite stones were in jeopardy, he said.
Association vice-president Dinakar Suvarna said contractors are concerned about environmental protection. 'We want the district administration to take steps to protect the environment while easing the rules in making sand and laterite stone available at an affordable cost.' By seeking relaxation in norms, the association was not favouring indiscriminate extraction of sand and laterite stones, Mr. Suvarna asserted.
'No scarcity'
Ruling out reports of scarcity of sand and laterite stone in Dakshina Kannada, an official from the Mines and Geology Department said a sufficient quantity of medium and coarse sand was available in 21 sand blocks in the non-CRZ area. People can book sand by accessing www.dksandbazaar.com throughout the day. In July, 60 orders for about 10 metric tonnes each were booked.
The official said a sufficient quantity of laterite stones extracted from 10 patta lands was available. The permission granted for the extraction of laterite stone in 320 patta lands has expired, he said.
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