Ludhiana: A day after the district administration claimed that mining being carried in the Khaira Bet area is from allotted desilting site, villagers and members of a farmers organisation continue to hold protest against the alleged “Illegal mining” in the area. Advocate Ravinderpal Singh Raju, who is the main face of the protest, claimed that more than 700 villagers including 200 to 250 women from Khaira Bet, Walipur Kalan, Burj Man Singh, Noorpur Bet, Hambran etc staged protest at the Pukka Morcha on Sunday. He added that they will not allow “illegal mining” in the name of desilting. Advocate Raju said that they will not budge till the authorities stop the mining permanently. He alleged that the concerned has dug up 20-25 feet deep in the river for sand. Saurav Syal, member of committee which has launched the protest said that during last floods, many villages were at risk and land of villagers was washed away by the floods. He added that the protest is to save the lives and property of the villagers. The protestors also maintained that the mining is illegal and raised objections against use of heavy machinery for the same. The district administration in a statement on Saturday had said that there is an allotted desilting site in Khaira bet complex District Ludhiana. It had added that it is a legal activity and usage of heavy machinery is allowed in this process as it is a time bound process.
