Revenue officials seize, destroy illegal barge dredging sand in Mumbra creek

The vigilance squads carried out a search and patrolling operation in the Mumbra creek from Mumbra to Dombivli for around 5 to 6 hours this morning. During the operation, the unauthorised barge was spotted and seized. Nayab tehsildar Dinesh Paithankar and the Vigilance Squad II then initiated the action to dismantle the barge using gas cutters

Thane: The Thane Collectorate and the vigilance team of the Revenue department on Wednesday seized a barge (a long flat-bottomed boat for carrying freight) engaged in illegal sand dredging in Mumbra Creek and destroyed it using gas cutters.

Rutuja story Thane, India - October,04, 2023: A barge, used in sand dredging, was destroyed on Wednesday with a gas cutter following a search operation ,in Thane, in Mumbai, India, on, Wednesday, October , 04, 2023. ( Praful Gangurde / HT Photo )

The vigilance squads carried out a search and patrolling operation in the Mumbra creek from Mumbra to Dombivli for around 5 to 6 hours this morning. During the operation, the unauthorised barge was spotted and seized. Nayab tehsildar Dinesh Paithankar and the Vigilance Squad II then initiated the action to dismantle the barge using gas cutters.

“All the boats that enter the water need to be sanctioned by the Maritime Board. It is not the duty of the Revenue Department to check whether these boats are legal. A 6ft barricade must be added to ensure that such illegal boats don’t enter the water.” Dinesh Paithankar, Nayab Tehsildar, told HT.

On September 12, 16 gelatin sticks and 17 detonators were seized from a boat in Mumbra Creek along with two barges and four suction pumps, which were being used to loosen the sand. While this is the first time that explosives were found, over 29 suction pumps and 24 barges have been destroyed and a minimum 569 brass of sand has been seized so far in 2023, a source from the collector’s office said.

When HT tried to contact the Thane collector Ashok Shingare, he did not respond.