Karjat Riverbed Mining Under Scrutiny After Complaints of Illegal Blasting
Following a TOI report on May 12 this year, environmental watchdog NatConnect Foundation wrote to the Chief Minister regarding a series of illegal uses of explosives, including crude bombs and gelatine sticks, in rural areas of Karjat taluka for extracting earth and rocks from riverbanks and hillsides.
Local residents stated that a complaint against illegal quarrying in the Bhaktawadi and Shingdol-Ambivali areas by a resident led to retaliatory actions.
NatConnect Director B N Kumar informed the Chief Minister, citing a media report. Quarry operators detonated two bombs near the complainant's residence, shaking windows. Environmentalists warned that such illegal activities could also damage biodiversity.
"The Chief Minister's office referred the issue to the Raigad collector, and NatConnect followed up seeking information via the Right To Action (RTI) Act route on actions taken on the Chief Minister's mail.
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The collector's office instructed the Karjat tahsildar to investigate. Dhananjay Jadhav, the tahsildar and executive magistrate, responded to NatConnect stating that his officials inspected the river site, which was filled with water," said Kumar.
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"Since the monsoon has set in and the river is full of water, one could not notice any blasts," Jadhav informed and assured that the administration would take action against culprits if the mining is detected.
According to a local activist, members of two local communities are primarily responsible for using explosives and heavy machinery to extract stones and rocks from these areas.
Illegal activities have resulted in the felling of mature trees to create access paths for JCBs to reach riverbanks for unlawful soil excavation. Residents say the continuous blasts have adversely impacted the water level and quality in the river. The complaints say that water flows into the holes created by the blasts. It is also environmentally unsound to keep blasting the riverbanks' bottoms, said an activist.
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