Ilegal quarrying of riverbed material is continuing unabated from the Gola river. locals complain that trucks carrying the quarried materials out from the gates at lalkuan, Halduchaud, Beripadav and Devram are transporting double the permitted quantity of quarried material with the help of corrupt departmental officials.
It is being alleged that employees of the Uttarakhand Forest Development Corporation (UFDC) are taking bribes from the truck owners and drivers which has increased discontent among them. The vehicle owners and drivers are now demanding that the royalty being paid to the corporation daily on the quarried material be made payable through the bank.
According to information received, UFDC employees are facilitating illegal quarrying on the Gola riverbed by allowing vehicles to take out twice the permitted quantity of the quarried riverbed material. Sources state that the corporation employees are making money by facilitating this irregularity but the authorities have failed to take any action yet to stop this.
The corporation allows the vehicles to carry out 140 quintals of quarried material in one trip per day but vehicle owners allege that the staff at lalkuan, Halduchaud, Beripadav and Devram gates is orchestrating anomalies to enable some vehicles to carry upto double the permitted quantity.
It is a common sight to see the same vehicle making several rounds contrary to the regulation. The vehicle owners who follow the regulations complain that corporation employees over-charge them by `50-100 more on the royalty. On being questioned, the employees are accused of misbehaving with the drivers.
This situation has led to heated exchanges on the gates manned by the corporation staff. The victims have complained about this repeatedly to the senior officials but no action has been taken to stop the irregularities. The vehicle owners now state that if concrete steps are not taken soon to redress the anomalies, they will be forced to launch an agitation.