Vellore bullock cart workers agitate for sand mining rights

VELLORE: More than 70 members of the Vellore District Bullock Cart Workers Welfare Association staged a dharna demanding permission to mine sand from the Palar river to safeguard their livelihood, in front of the Vellore Collectorate on Monday.

Demanding that the government set up sand quarries in all taluks in the state, association president SK Sankar said ID cards should be given to bullock cart owners to mine sand from the government sand quarry at Arumparuthi in Katpadi taluk.

Stating that all bullock cart owners were deeply affected financially due to the pandemic, they demanded that government to ensure that only the quantity quantified by the court be removed from quarries.

While quarries allotted to cart owners in 2016 were thrown open to lorries also, he said daily up to 800 lorry loads of sand amounting to 3,000 units was being lifted from the quarries.

Referring to Arumpaurthi quarry he said though boundaries were demarcated for this quarry sand was being mined beyond the boundary, he alleged.