New Delhi/Shimla, Nov 24: Unregulated riverbed mining across Himachal Pradesh has caused extensive ecological harm and triggered sharp warnings from the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal, which have told the state government that unchecked extraction is worsening environmental vulnerability. Illegal operations continue across several districts despite a complete ban on mining in major rivers.
Environmental experts say the large-scale removal of sand, boulders, gravel and pebbles directly from active river channels has destabilised the river systems and degraded land in vast stretches of the basin. In many locations, heavy machinery such as JCB and Poclain excavators is operating in violation of rules, accelerating extraction far beyond the rate of natural replenishment.
The Supreme Court recently cautioned that Himachal Pradesh faced a worsening ecological crisis with climate change already having a “visible and alarming impact.” The Bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan stated, “We want to impress upon the state government and the Union of India that earning revenue is not everything. Revenue cannot be earned at the cost of the environment and the ecology.”
Despite repeated directions from the NGT and the Supreme Court over the past two years, rampant mining is reported in Una, Kangra, Solan and Kullu. Activists say authorities have failed to act against what they describe as a mafia-like network. They argue that the state has learned nothing from recent flash floods and landslides that caused heavy loss of life and property.
Environmentalists maintain that the damage is already severe. They say riverbed mining in the fragile Himalayan terrain has intensified erosion, destabilised hillsides and left river plains more vulnerable to sudden floods during monsoon flows.
Local activists K.B. Ralhan and Subhash Sharma, from the NGO People’s Voice in Kangra valley, noted the absence of reliable data. “The lack of adequate scientific studies on this environmentally-sensitive activity is a major hurdle in proper decision making and creating awareness among people at different levels,” they said.
