JUMLA:- The District Administration Office here has warned of action against those engaging in illegal extraction of pebbles and sand from river.

Chief District Officer Dipak Poudel said the authority would take stringent action if illegal mining of river and extraction of stones, pebbles and sand go unchecked in the Tila and Hima Rivers. CDO Paudel warned it during a programme organized by the Monsoon Preparedness and Response Plan here Monday.

He further said the concerned agencies including the crusher industries were directed repeatedly against the mining carried out without permission. So, such activities would be closed down soon. CDO Poudel said the legal action would be taken if the industries mining riverbed do not close down these activities.

Civil society coordinator in the district, Raj Bahadur Mahat, complained that crusher industries were running even after the completion of development projects in the district, thereby extracting and selling stones and sand. It was illegal, he added.

“The excavation spree on river bank has a direct role in triggering disasters,” said Rom Bahadur Mahat, an officer at the District Coordination Committee.

Mayor of Chandannath Municipality, Raju Singh Kathayat, however pledged legal actions to those launching extraction of river products like stones, pebbles and sand. The action would also help generate revenue, he added.

Chairman of Tatopani Rural Municipality, Nanda Prasad Chaulagain, viewed timely action plan was imperative for smooth and effective disaster management.

Other participants in the event demanded criteria to run crusher industries and regulation of excavation activities in the district. The District Administration Office shared that it received numerous complaints that most of such industries were running illegally.  RSS