70 vehicles impounded in 6 months along Yamuna in Karnal district

Parveen Arora

Karnal, July 8

In a bid to curb illegal mining activities along the Yamuna river, the Haryana State Enforcement Bureau has seized 70 vehicles involved in mining operations in the past six months. This initiative has led to the registration of 33 FIRs related to these mining activities. Most of the vehicles involved in the illegal operations are from the Indri and Kunjpura areas.

Illegal mining along the river has been a concern for a long time as it causes significant environmental degradation and loss of government revenue.

Vikas Kumar, DSP, Enforcement, Karnal, said the Haryana State Enforcement Bureau was started on July 1, 2023, to check illegal mining, electricity theft, overloading of vehicles, illegal colonies and sale of illicit liquor etc.

Highlighting the steps being taken to combat illegal mining, Kumar said, “Our team has been working tirelessly to identify and take action against illegal mining operations. We seize vehicles, register FIRs and impose fines as per law.”

Several vehicles have been kept at different police stations, including those in Indri and Kunjpura, after being impounded due to the non-payment of fines. “If the accused fails to deposit the fine, we proceed by filing a case in court,” Kumar said. Previously, there were eight police stations across the state to handle these cases, but now each district has its own dedicated station.

The Enforcement Bureau has also filed nine cases in the court after the accused have failed to deposit the fines.

The DSP appealed to the public to report illegal mining activities on the helpline number 112, emphasising the importance of community involvement in preserving the environment.

People living along with the Yamuna river have commended their efforts. “Illegal mining not only depletes our natural resources but also causes irreversible damage to the environment. We are happy with the action being taken by the bureau,” said Krishan Kumar, a farmer.