The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has set up a Joint Committee to investigate allegations of illegal mining by BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh in Gonda district, Uttar Pradesh. The probe was initiated in response to claims made by Raja Ram Singh, who accused Singh of involvement in illegal mining activities in several villages. Singh alleged that over 700 overloaded trucks were used daily to transport and sell about 20 lakh cubic meters of minor minerals, causing damage to the Patpar Ganj Bridge and Road.
On August 2, the bench of Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi and Dr A Senthil Vel from NGT found the application’s content raised environmental concerns and decided to form the Joint Committee to verify the factual position and take necessary remedial action. The committee comprises representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB), and the District Magistrate of Gonda. The committee is directed to meet within one week, visit the site, investigate the grievances of the applicant, and consider compliance with the Sustainable Sand Mining Management Guidelines, 2016, and the Enforcement and Monitoring Guidelines for Sand Mining, 2020. The NGT has requested a factual and Action Taken Report from the committee within two months, with the next hearing scheduled for November 7, 2023.
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