GO GREEN WITH ENVY? NOT REALLY!: If only the authorities realised the damage beforehand, destruction of nature like the huge crater formed at S.P. Nagar, near Moulali dargah, due to quarrying could have been avoided. — PHOTO: P.V. Sivakumar

HYDERABAD: Here is a classic case where the authorities wake up from slumber and decide to undo the damage when it is too late.

After being a mute witness to rampant destruction of scores of rock formations of heritage importance, the Ranga Reddy district administration now wants to put a lid on non-stop quarrying.

However, one wonders whether the district administration can salvage any rock formations on the city outskirts as almost all the major sites have already been blown to bits — all in the name of construction activity. The district alone has 160 quarry operators and 130 crushers of varying capacities functioning at various rock sites on a daily basis.

Officials point out that they are in the process of identifying sites or blocks that will adhere to the guidelines of the Pollution Control Board and the Revenue Department. These blocks will be declared central mining zones.

`No fresh licences'

The authorities say that they have stopped giving fresh licences for quarrying in the district. They have also asked the existing quarry owners to stop the work till they identify mining zones. "We want to reduce the number of places to 10 blocks in the district and will like to allow them to function within the identified mining zones. We will be able to arrive at some conclusion by next week," says Assistant Director (Mines), Ranga Reddy district, M.K. Baig.

Officials indicate that they are in the process of identifying the blocks to set up a centralised quarry where almost all the operators will be allotted some place to carry out their respective operations.

"There is a central mining zone at Bandi Raviryala in Hayathnagar mandal.

We are trying to identify another one at Medchal depending on the availability of land. The mining will have to be done only on Government lands," says tehsildar M. Krishna.

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