Mounesh Vishwakarma

Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal (EP)

Bantwal, Sep 29: Hundreds of aggrieved villagers of Panemangalore and Narikombu villages have submitted complaints on Wednesday September 29 to Bantwal tahsildar and the town police station urging for suitable action against alleged illegal black stone quarrying in progress using explosives in their villages.

The villagers said that the gram panchayat PDO, village accountant and gram panchayat president’s team visited the spot responding to the complaint submitted by the villagers earlier after visiting Narikombu gram panchayat.

“Cracks have developed on the walls of several houses, roof tiles and cement sheets are broken due to illegal stone quarrying. A stone fell on the cement sheet of the house belonging to Geeta, a resident during the explosion on Wednesday. The stone fragments and the dust that flies during the explosion have adversely affected the health of children and the elderly. Cows that graze the grass covered with the debris suffer due to indigestion. Paddy in the fields is destroyed. Therefore, immediate action should be taken,” urged the villagers in the petition. “Tahsildar Rashmi has directed the mining department officers for spot inspection,” said the villagers.

Madesha, an officer of the department of mining, visited the spot in the evening on directions from tahsildar Rashmi. The villagers confronted the officer for having permitted the quarry without survey.