The Union Environment Ministry has announced that no riverbed material quarrying or sand mining operations should be conducted during the monsoon season. This decision was communicated to state governments and union territories (UTs) this week after multiple requests from the Uttarakhand government and mining companies in Himachal Pradesh earlier this year to extend sand mining permissions until June, the first month of the monsoon.
In a letter dated May 17, the Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand requested the Ministry to amend or extend the approved sand mining periods to ensure consistency in permissions granted for sand mining in forest areas. This request was discussed at the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) meeting on July 4.
The FAC also noted a similar request from Himachal Pradesh, seeking to extend the mining period until July, beyond the current allowance until May. The Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand further highlighted several important rivers where mining approvals had been granted and requested an extension of the period until June each year to ensure consistent and uninterrupted operations.
Typically, sand mining projects are permitted from October 1 to May 31 each year. The FAC emphasized that the Central Government has issued guidelines, including the Sustainable Sand Mining Guidelines, 2016, and the Enforcement and Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining, 2020, to ensure environmentally sustainable and socially responsible mining practices. These guidelines explicitly recommend that no riverbed mining be allowed during the monsoon period, as defined by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) for each state.
Based on the FAC’s decision, the ministry has instructed all states and UTs that the validity of sand quarrying operations, as outlined in previous approvals under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, is modified to prohibit mining activities during the monsoon period. Furthermore, state governments and UT administrations are required to comply with the provisions of the Sustainable Sand Mining Guidelines, 2016, and the Enforcement and Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining, 2020, to ensure sustainable sand extraction from riverbeds in forest areas.
The monsoon is crucial for replenishing sand and boulders in riverbeds. The Enforcement and Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining, 2020, recommend conducting four surveys: one in April to record the mining lease levels before the monsoon, another at the end of the mining season to determine the amount extracted, a third after the monsoon to assess the replenished material, and a fourth in March to calculate the annual extraction volume.
“A replenishment study is vital to determine how much riverbed material can be safely extracted. This should be conducted before and after the monsoon to gauge the replenishment rate for the next year. The monsoon brings necessary riverbed material, and removing it during this time can be dangerous, causing rivers to shift towards the banks and potentially leading to flooding. Uttarakhand, which is prone to disasters, should be particularly cautious,” said Hemant Dhyani, a member of the Supreme Court’s High Powered Committee (HPC) on the Char Dham road project and a Uttarakhand-based environmentalist.
