Dhenkanal: As mining mafias become active in the district and minor minerals being rampantly quarried, Dhenkanal district administration has prepared a blueprint to adopt technology to curb the illegal activities here.
In order to check quarrying of sand, stone and other minerals, the district administration will install CCTV cameras at police check posts for surveillance. Frequent raids will be conducted on illegal sand and stone quarries. Task forces have been constituted for the purpose, the district Collector Bhumesh Chandra Behera informed.
Stringent action will be taken against anybody caught during raids and materials seized while transportation. It has come to knowledge that mafias attack administrative officials during raids. It was being alleged that local police remain silent on such issues. Hence, task forces have been constituted in the district and subdivisions including eight tehsils of Dhenkanal district, he added.
Behera directed police officials to bring incidents of attack to the knowledge of the Collector and the SP immediately. He also directed the officials to submit action taken reports (ATRs). Proactive steps will be taken towards safeguarding administrative officials who participate.
It is known that the district Collector, Superintendent of Police, Divisional Forest Officer including police and revenue staffs will take part in surprise raids to be conducted in the future.
“Strategies will be chalked out keeping coordination with the district police and administrative officials in the days ahead,” Dhenkanal SP Anupama James asserted.
Notably, a meeting in this regard was held at Sadvabana hall at the district collectorate Thursday. Behera insisted that the top administrative and police officials to be tough on mafias quarrying minor minerals.
Six of the tehsildars in the district were slapped show cause notices few days back and they are supposed to reply within seven days.
Additional Collectors Bhabesh Nayak, Saudamini Sethi, DFO Bimal Prasanna Acharya, Sub-Collectors Saphalya Mandit Pradhan, Bishnu Prasad Acharya, Udayanath Mohapatra, Assistant Collector Lisa Das and several others participated in the meeting.
PNN