PUTTUR: Residents of Savanoor in the taluk are complaining that the authorities have turned a blind eye to the unabated sand smuggling towards Kerala from the Kumaradhara river banks near Savanoor, since the past six months.
Reports say the sand smuggled from the river bed were stocked near Savanoor and smuggled during night time via Eshwaramangala and Jalsur towards Kerala.
Sources even indicated that an influential politician of Eshwaramngala was behind this sand smuggling racket. Locals also revealed how the sand smuggling lorry that was seized by the police near Eshwaramangala recently, was released following just one phone call from this politician.
Though the Puttur tahsildar, in one of his recent operations, seized three lorries that were smuggling sand from the Netravathi river banks at Uppinangady, it has been a surprise that he has not taken any step towards putting a brake to the sand smuggling from the Kumaradhara river.
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