The Odisha High Court has asked the Collectors of three districts to stop all stone quarrying and mining activities in biodiversity zones and cancel the leases granted to individuals in such areas. A Division Bench of the court comprising Chief Justice Amitava Roy and Justice AK Rath issued the notices to the Collectors of Baleswar, Mayurbhanj and Jajpur on Monday while hearing a PIL filed by one Bholanath Rout and others. The petitioners have alleged that while the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), in its guidelines, has clearly mentioned that there cannot be any construction work within a five-km radius of any sanctuary, national park and sensitive biodiversity zones, the State Government has leased out land in areas within the biodiversity zones for non-forest purposes. The petitioners have also pointed out that the leaseholders have been carrying out illegal blasting in the stone quarries developed by them in these areas without prior permission of the State Forest and Environment Department and the Odisha State Pollution Control Board. Stating that these illegal activities have adversely affected the ecology and flora and fauna in these biodiversity zones, the petitioners have prayed the High Court for its early intervention in the matter.