Environment Ministry Secretary laments regional cabals’ control over mining of sand and granite

By Rathindra Kuruwita

A cabal of regional politicians and businessmen had put paid to the government efforts to ensure that rural communities enjoyed the benefits of natural resources around them, Dr. Anil Jasinghe, Secretary of the Ministry of Environment said.

Jasinghe said: “When I was in the Health Ministry, I thought the pharmaceutical mafia was strong, but now I see that the sand and granite Mafia is as strong as the pharmaceutical Mafia. This Mafia controls the price of sand and granite.”

The regional politicians were controlling sand and granite extraction, and members of the vulnerable rural communities were working for them as labourers. Those politicians and businessmen also flouted laws openly, he said.

“For example, machines can’t be used to extract sand from rivers. They can only be used to extract sand from river beds but everyone knows that machines are used to extract sand directly from the forest. Our ToR is to allow the poor people to benefit from these resources but they are only labourers now”

Dr. Jasinghe said that the economic situation was not good and that members of the vulnerable communities should be allowed to enjoy the benefits of the resources around them.

He said there was a pressing need to regulate the exploitation of such resources as politicians and businessmen were destroying the environment.