Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (SP)

Udupi, Dec 18: In all likelihood, sand extraction will begin in five sand blocks identified within coastal regulatory zone of the district on Tuesday December 18.

Deputy commissioner of the district, Priyanka Mary Francis, who had convened a meeting in this respect on December 11, had warned that licences of the contractors who do not begin to clear the sand blocks by December 17 would be permanently cancelled.

DC Priyanka Francis

Out of 45 eligible licencees, 11 had collected their licences by paying royalty. Five sand blocks had been earmarked for them. At the above meeting, some among them had raised the topic of shortage in number of sand blocks and need to extend some concession in rules. But till December 11, none of them had begun the work of clearing the sand blocks.

The deputy commissioner said that second phase of bathymetric survey has also been completed, and its report will identify additional sand blocks. She said that the licencees in the past had said that bathymetric survey was not needed and therefore it had not been undertaken initially.

Some of the licence holders, lorry owners, committee fighting for sand and MLA, Raghupati Bhat, had demanded issuance of licences to all the 171 traditional sand licence holders identified in the past.