Shillong, March 6: BJP leader and MDC from Tura Bernard N Marak has sought the intervention of the Meghalaya High Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) into the alleged operation of illegal stone quarries in Garo Hills region.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Marak said that many illegal stone quarries are being run in Pipulbari areas and in East Garo Hills.
“Illegal quaries run freely in the plain areas and these stones are exported to Bangladesh with “Goonda Tax” of Rs 2,500/- per truck,” he said.
He alleged that these overloaded trucks ply freely through Tura town at night without proper challan which cannot be checked by police due to high level involvement.
The over loaded trucks damaged the Tura roads in many places and Tura-Dalu road construction also are badly affected, Marak added.
According to him, the road near Civil Surgeon’s office in Tura upto Babupara has sunk at some point and are badly damaged on the left side of the road because over loaded trucks ply through it at night.
“If such activities are not stopped by the Government, Hon’ble Court is our last hope,” Marak said.
He wanted to know how these trucks operate without proper challan, weight bridge and why police cannot check these vehicles.
“Surely, people at the high level dearly benefits from these quarries and illegal transportation,” he said.
He added that this has caused inconvenience to the public besides loss of revenue.
JJM issues
People in Garo Hills are not happy with the sub contractors who connected Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in rural villages, Bernard said.
Prime Minister’s dream to connect all rural houses with running water is not satisfactory to the public because of corrupt contractors, he alleged.
“Most villages don’t get running water and the approved pipes were not provided to the public. Plastic pipes and old pipes were used to connect in some villages. The tanks and sintexs were provided with no water supply. In some villages, huge amounts have been demanded to get water supplied to their houses. People contributed and worked without wages but in the end, their aspirations to get running water remain merely a dream”, Bernard said.
