After High Court Rap, Central Agency Probes Alleged Illegal Mining In Punjab's Hoshiarpur

The Central Bureau of Investigation or CBI took action in an alleged illegal mining case in Punjab's Hoshiarpur district on Wednesday. A team reached Amro village in the Talwara area and later visited the mining department's office on Tanda Road in Hoshiarpur. 

According to local reports, nearly 10 vehicles reached Amro village, where illegal mining allegedly took place on a large scale.

The probe is likely to examine allegations of excavation to depths of 100 to 110 feet in parts of the district, with claims that hills were levelled or disappeared due to mining. 

The Central agency, however, has not officially disclosed the scope of Wednesday's operation, the material examined or any recoveries made. Officials at the mining department's office declined to comment on the issue.

The action follows a September 18 order by the Punjab and Haryana High Court directing the agency to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the allegations of rampant illegal mining in Hoshiarpur. The court flagged concerns over extensive ecological destruction and possible collusion by state authorities. It asked the agency to identify those responsible and ensure accountability.

The order came on a petition filed by Rahul Manchanda through advocate Saurav Bhatia. 

The petition alleged that regulatory authorities had failed to prevent widespread environmental damage and claimed that illegal mining was being carried out with the active connivance of officials from the Department of Mines and Geology and the Punjab Pollution Control Board.

Photographs purportedly showing extensive ecological destruction were also submitted in support of the allegations.

The case has renewed scrutiny of Punjab's mining regulatory framework and allegations of official complicity. It is the second case from the state handed over to the CBI by the High Court this year. 

Coming months ahead of the assembly elections, it has potentially put the government's handling of illegal mining under greater scrutiny.

The allegations, however, remain subject to investigation, and the responsibility needs to be established through probe.

Neither the CBI nor the local administration had issued an official statement detailing the searches or the next steps in the inquiry at the time of publication.