CHENNAI: PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss has strongly opposed the Tamil Nadu government's reported move to reopen 10 to 12 sand quarries, warning that the decision could cause irreversible environmental damage and turn the Cauvery Delta into a desert.
In a statement, Anbumani noted that after the DMK government reopened 25 sand quarries across nine rivers, including the Cauvery, Kollidam, Vaippar and Vellar, allegations of excessive sand extraction and illegal financial transactions led to ED raids and the eventual closure of the quarries.
Questioning the government's justification that the move is needed to address a shortage of construction sand, Anbumani said alternatives such as importing sand should be explored.
He also expressed scepticism over the government's proposal to monitor quarry operations through satellite surveillance, arguing that it would not effectively prevent over-extraction.
Referring to official data, he claimed that Tamil Nadu requires around 60,000 truckloads of sand every day and warned that reopening the quarries could result in the extraction of several crore units of river sand annually.
Such large-scale mining, he said, would dry up rivers, including the Cauvery and Kollidam and severely affect groundwater recharge and agriculture in the Delta districts.
Drawing a parallel with Karnataka's proposed Mekedatu dam project, Anbumani alleged that reopening sand quarries would similarly threaten the future of the Cauvery Delta.
He urged the State government to abandon the proposal and instead focus on constructing check dams at regular intervals along major rivers.