Date:10/11/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/11/10/stories/2006111020970300.htm

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Country boats confiscated

Staff Reporter

SEIZED: Revenue officials confiscating country boats seized during a recent raid against illegal sand-mining in the Neyyattinkara taluk in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday. — Photo: S. Gopakumar

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A team of revenue officials on Thursday confiscated 19 country boats that were seized by Thiruvananthapuram RDO K.V. Mohan Kumar during a raid against illegal sand-mining in Neyyattinkara taluk on October 17.

The seized boats were kept under police protection at a landing area beneath the Poovar bridge. An earthmover was pressed into service to load the boats onto the lorries. The boats were later taken to the Neyyattinkara taluk office. Three boats were destroyed while being dragged from the landing area.

Additional Tahsildar Neyyattinkara K. Surendran said that nobody had come forward to claim ownership of the boats all these days. From this it was clear that the boats were being used by the sand `mafia' at Neyyattinkara taluk, he added.

Raids were conducted on October 17 at the Poovar, Thirupuram and Kulathur panchayats and at Parayanvilakkadavu, Pozhikkara and Thiruthumoola.

Though the RDO had assured the local people that if the boats were found to be used for legitimate purposes no action would be taken against the boat owners, a group of people had tried to forcibly take away the seized boats on the evening of October 17.

It was then than a police picket was set up on the spot. The RDO had also promised that the district administration would work with local bodies to issue permits for sand-mining in identified areas.