CHENNAI: PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss has urged the State government to drop the plan to open new sand quarries across Tamil Nadu and warned of continuous protests if the government fails to close down existing sand quarries.

In a statement, Anbumani said that hills are being broken down in southern districts and the Kongu region, and the minerals are being smuggled to Kerala.

“On the other hand, illegal mining of river sand is going on unabated. PMK’s stand is that all the sand quarries in the State should be closed down. The government can import sand from foreign countries or produce artificial sand for construction work. But the government should not turn the State into a desert by allowing sand mining,” he added.

He urged the government to drop the opening of more than 20 new sand quarries in 13 districts. In 2023, the government opened 25 sand quarries to mine 7.51 lakh units. “As per the report submitted by the Enforcement Directorate in the Madras High Court, as many as 27.70 lakh units of sand were mined, which is 4 times higher than the approved limit,” he pointed out.