The Supreme Court has called for the properties of those involved in illegal sand mining in the National Chambal Sanctuary to be attached, in a bid to catch the 'kingpin' behind the operations.
A bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta made the remarks during a hearing of a suo motu case, which was sparked by newspaper reports of large-scale mining in the sanctuary.
The court expressed concern that most of those arrested in connection with the mining were merely drivers or labourers, and that the 'source' of the operation remained at large.
The bench also asked why unregistered vehicles were being allowed to operate freely in the mining-prone districts of Dholpur (Rajasthan) and Morena (Madhya Pradesh).
The court was informed that Rajasthan had registered 625 FIRs and arrested over 600 persons, but that most of those arrested were low-level operatives.
The bench directed the states to take urgent steps to curb the illegal trade, and asked them to provide details of the action they had taken so far.
The court also asked the states to explain why they had not notified eco-sensitive zones (ESZ) around the sanctuary, and why they had not declared the area as 'forest'.
The bench posted the matter for May 26 for further directions.
