Illegal Sand Mining: an Unsustainable Approach Encroaching Environment

Abstract

There are continuous efforts being made to outshine every other nation in the contexts of development. Efforts are channelled to prove that India is a YES country to every sort of development soon to be labelled as the developed country touching altitudes of development. Lesser do we find any budgetary allocation at the large scale being put up just to ensure that developmental activity does not coincide rather encroaches our environment affecting climate, biodiversity and living entities.  Juxtapose it is reported that budgets are being cut short which were allocated for it. As per the World Wildlife Fund, sand is the most extractive resource. To put it thus, sand mining is done to meet up the demands of ever rising construction industry which is currently taking leaps and bounds to catch up with the rising urbanisation. But this is done at the cost of rivers which thus change their course affecting marine lives further causing floods to the worse. The economic needs and the ever-rising competition have led to illegal sand mining. This has become a pan India problem, where restricting this illegal activity invites goons/mafia taking tolls on the lives and threatening the whistleblowers. This paper is an attempt to address this grave situation of illegal sand mining in India. Whether there is any framework to check such activities?  Where does India stand to rebuild the already lost habitat and encroached riverbeds? What is the sustainable solution of the problem of illegal sand mining? How to check the Sand mafia and goons? Finally, the road ahead how to replenish and make efforts to save this resource for future use.