Two revenue department employees have been suspended for failing to prevent illegal sand mining in the area under their supervision in Maharashtra’s Beed district, an official told PTI on Friday.
Senior officials found signs of rampant violence. Illegal sand mining near a river basin in Georai taluka, prompting action against Purushottam Sudhakar Andhale (mandal adhikari) and Kiran Prabhakar Dandhe (talathi), the official added.
Tax Collector Avinash Pathak reportedly suspended the duo for dereliction of duty on Thursday, the official said.
Operation against illegal sand mining in Thane
Authorities in Maharashtra’s Thane district seized and destroyed equipment used for illegal sand mining in the district on June 26, PTI reported.
The equipment was estimated to be worth Rs 24 lakh.
According to PTI, the crackdown was carried out by the Bhiwandi sub-divisional office in the area spanning from Kalher to Kon, an official said.
Upon seeing the security team, workers aboard a barge fled the scene. In an attempt to evade capture, they deliberately damaged the hull of the barge, rendering it immobile and eventually submerged, he said, according to the news agency.
Efforts are on to remove the suction pump from Kalher port using a ship, with plans to dismantle and permanently disable it using gas cutters to prevent any future use for illegal activities, the official added, according to PTI.
Mumbai Crime Branch busts arms supply ring
Mumbai Crime Branch Unit 9 arrested a member of a gang of Mirzapur who was supplying arms in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. Crime Branch officers also recovered eight sophisticated pistols and 138 rounds of live ammunition from the accused and arrested two others from Navi Mumbai area.
Crime Branch sources said at midday, “This gang was only supplying arms to people with criminal background, and their weapons were used in many firing incidents across Maharashtra.” The main accused is Mitailal Gulab Chaudhari (53), a resident of Bhuij Khas village in Chunar, Mirzapur.
A Crime Branch source told DailyNewsHype, “The accused Chaudhari had been supplying sophisticated firearms in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai for many years. Like the characters in the web series Mirzapur, Chaudhari was involved in manufacturing weapons in Mirzapur and supplying them to Mumbai and Navi Mumbai.”
(With contributions from PTI)
