Himachal flood probe finds 68 of 131 stone crushers in Beas basin illegal

Besides climate change, unscientific and illegal mining along river beds were responsible for the natural calamity in the state during the monsoon that caused huge damage to life and property, the multi-sector committee said in its interim report submitted to the government recently.

The multi-sector committee set up by the Himachal Pradesh government to study the factors responsible for the flash floods and landslides during the monsoon has found that 68 of the 131 stone crushers in the Beas river basin were running without permission.

A road being cleared after landslide in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh during the monsoon this year. Flash floods and landslides claimed 509 lives in rain-related incidents and road accidents in the state. (HT file photo)

Besides climatic change, unscientific and illegal mining along the river beds are responsible for the natural calamity in the state causing huge damage to life and property, the committee said in its interim report submitted to the government.

The committee was constituted after flash floods and landslides claimed 509 lives in rain-related incidents and road accidents, a spokesperson of the state government said.

According to the report, of the 131 stone crushers set up in the Beas river basin, 68 did not have the necessary permission, while seven were affected by the floods, few anomalies were found in six and only 50 operators were found to have permits.

Due to excessive muck dumping in the Beas and on its banks, the flash floods caused enormous damage to life and both the public and the private property, the report said.

It said the environmental balance of the Beas river basin is under pressure, which needs to be studied scientifically and also stressed on suggesting short, medium and long-term measures for the operation of stone crushers.

The spokesperson said that depending on the conditions, the committee has recommended granting permission to operate 50 stone crushers which have received permission with mandatory guidelines. These crushers can be operated for 12 hours from 6am to 6pm. The committee also recommended installation of CCTV cameras at all stone crushers which will be monitored by the State Pollution Control Board and the mining department.

If any illegal mining is found within 500-metre radius of the stone crushers, the local authority should report it in writing, otherwise action should be taken against the owner of the crusher.