📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Suresh Kumar Vakalapudi
Crime
NGT Orders Odisha to File FIRs for All Illegal Sand Mining Cases
✍️ The Hawk
🗓 06 Nov 2026, 11:33 AM
👁 12
The National Green Tribunal has directed the state of Odisha to make filing First Information Reports mandatory for all illegal sand mining activities.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday directed the state of Odisha to make filing First Information Reports (FIRs) mandatory for every case of illegal sand mining.
The order follows a growing concern over the environmental damage caused by unregulated sand extraction from rivers and coastal areas. Illegal mining has led to erosion, loss of biodiversity and disruption of local livelihoods.
Under the directive, law enforcement agencies in Odisha must register an FIR as soon as they receive a complaint or evidence of illicit sand extraction. The NGT emphasized that timely FIRs will enable faster investigation and prosecution.
The ruling is expected to strengthen the state's enforcement framework and deter future violations. Odisha officials have pledged to cooperate with the tribunal and to improve monitoring of sand mining activities.
The order follows a growing concern over the environmental damage caused by unregulated sand extraction from rivers and coastal areas. Illegal mining has led to erosion, loss of biodiversity and disruption of local livelihoods.
Under the directive, law enforcement agencies in Odisha must register an FIR as soon as they receive a complaint or evidence of illicit sand extraction. The NGT emphasized that timely FIRs will enable faster investigation and prosecution.
The ruling is expected to strengthen the state's enforcement framework and deter future violations. Odisha officials have pledged to cooperate with the tribunal and to improve monitoring of sand mining activities.