G.P. Varma | July, 2002

Indiscriminate sand mining operations threatens the Ganges river flow in Kanpur. Will a ban on sand mining, result in the 'return of the Ganga', to Kanpur's banks?

There was a time when the Ganga proudly flowed past 18 ghats in the industrial city of Kanpur in northern India.

	Ghats at Kanpur

But its course has gradually changed. The main stream of the river has moved away from most of the ghats, including the historic Bhairon and Sidhnath ghats. While there are ways and means of ensuring that Ganga returns, indiscriminate sand mining operations threaten the river flow even in those stretches where it still touches Kanpur.

Miners have blocked the flow of the river placing sandbags and bricks as barriers, so that they may 'mine' the sand from the riverbed. The flip side of this illegal act, is that it also prevents the river from reaching the banks. The barriers have been placed at the river's bifurcation point between Buriha and Sidhnath ghats.

Environmentalists and NGOs have called for immediate measures, including a ban on mining. The city administration has also accepted that the barriers violate all norms and rules and also are causing Ganga water to stagnate in places.

Rakesh Jaiswal of the local NGO, Eco-Friends, has demanded the banning of mining while asking for corrective action to allow the river flow freely. Eco-Friends has been spearheading a campaign for cleaning of the river for almost a decade.

Miners win, ok?
The miners have considerable political clout. They haven't hesitated to construct a track across the river, so that trucks can cart away sand from mining area. Hundreds of truckloads of sand are then excavated every day from the riverbed to be sent to markets or to fill up low-lying areas.

The net result is scanty flow along the Kanpur banks. This has also led to water stagnation along the city banks: sewage and effluents from the leather industries let into the dry riverbed. With no river water available to dilute toxic tannery effluents and sewage, these remained stinking cesspools, adds Jaiswal.

This lethal cocktail has already killed thousands of fish and other marine life in the river. And if the obstructions are not removed, the very existence of the river might be threatened in a 5 km stretch. Beyond this stretch, the river from Unnao again turns towards Kanpur to touch the banks.

Political failure
The issue of sand mining is not a new debate. A Bharatiya Janata Party office bearer had taken up the matter with the then Chief Minister Rajnath Singh earlier this year. The district administration, which swung into action on receipt of a directive from Mr. Singh, accepted that obstructions were erected in violation of the rules.

Former Chief Minister of U.P. Mr. Rajnath Singh

The then officer in charge and Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue) C.P. Pathak, had written to Deputy Collector (city) on February 23 regarding his letter No. 161/12- sub mineral/2001 for necessary action. Mr. Pathak charged that in accordance with rule 41 of the U.P. Mining and Minerals Rule 1963, no obstructions or wall could be constructed to block the flow of the Ganga; and that sand mining leaseholders had erected four barriers which had diverted the stream of the Ganga towards Unnao. Stagnated water along the Kanpur side was exacerbating the effects of pollution.

Pathak also said that mining was being pursued even after sunset, which was against the rules.

In his reply to the ADM on March 13, Deputy Collector I.P. Pandey had confirmed the violations and underlined the need for the serving of notices on the leaseholders. He had informed the Forest Department (as the area falls under forest category) and arranging for labour, machinery and police force for removal and dismantling of obstructions under the supervision of authorities.

Sand mining permission originally granted by the Forest and Environment Ministry also imposed several regulations on miners. It specified that no track or new road would be constructed within the forest area; no mining would occur after sunset and the forest area would be demarcated properly. None of these conditions, have been honoured by the miners.

In other words, the authorities failed to halt these illegal activities. Sand mining is, after all, highly profitable.

G.P. Varma is a Kanpur based journalist.

For more reading, visit the following sites :
Sidhnath ghat: http://www.dailyexcelsior.com/02apr02/national.htm#1
Eco-friends: www.elaw.org/partners/ecofriends.html
Bharatiya Janata Party: www.bjp.org