The government had been operating sand quarries across Tamil Nadu. Based on allegations that more sand than the permitted limit was extracted from the quarries, the Enforcement Directorate conducted surprise raids at the quarries. A case was also registered in connection with this. As a result, the sand quarries have not been functioning for the past three years. Therefore, only M-sand is being used for construction. At present, the price of M-sand has also increased many times over. Hence, Tamil Nadu Sand Lorry Owners Federation president Chella Rajamani has submitted a petition to Chief Minister Vijay, the Water Resources Minister, and others, requesting that the sand quarries be reopened and operated without irregularities. In this regard, a protest drawing attention to the issue was also held on behalf of the federation.

Regarding this, the federation’s president, Chella Rajamani, said, ``The sand quarries that had been operating across Tamil Nadu were closed in 2023. As a result, more than 55,000 sand lorries that depended entirely on sand quarries have been left idle and parked. These lorries can be used only for transporting sand loads. Therefore, no other loads can be carried by these lorries. With the closure of the sand quarries, the livelihood of lorry owners, drivers, and their families has been completely affected. Those who bought lorries on loan have been pushed into a situation where they cannot pay their EMIs.
The price of a unit of sand at government-run sand quarries had been fixed at Rs. 2,650. Since the sand quarries have been closed, construction work is now forced to depend on M-sand. As a result, a unit of M-sand is being sold for up to Rs. 5,000. Some of the quarry owners who operate M-sand are engaging in irregularities through fake bills. Therefore, when transporting M-sand, there is a risk of getting caught by the revenue department and the police. Moreover, even though M-sand is expensive, buildings are not as strong as they are with sand. M-sand was introduced as an alternative to sand. At present, M-sand is being produced by destroying natural resources. As a result, natural resources are being destroyed and environmental pollution is also occurring. Therefore, the government should come forward to reopen sand quarries as an alternative to M-sand. At the same time, the government itself should operate the sand quarries without irregularities.
In addition, it has been many years since the dams, including Mettur, were desilted. If those dams are desilted, several lakh units of sand can be obtained. Through this, water storage in dams like Mettur can also be increased. If the government itself operates sand quarries without irregularities, it can earn several lakh rupees in revenue every month. But at present, sand theft is taking place in some parts of Tamil Nadu. This is causing the government a revenue loss of several lakh rupees. To prevent that, the government should itself run the sand quarries. That way, sand lorry owners and the workers who depend on this industry will get employment opportunities. Already, we held a peaceful protest in Tiruchi to draw the government's attention. We have placed before the Chief Minister Vijay, the Water Resources Minister, and the government secretaries the demand that sand quarries be opened. If the government does not heed that, a massive protest will be held across Tamil Nadu on behalf of our federation,'' he said.
