Seize 24 tractor-trailers near Mehatpur Hand over their drivers to police Sand was being ferried from Sutlej bed Jalandhar/Nakodar : After the authorities concerned allegedly failed them, residents of Parjian-Kalan and Narangpur villages near Mehatpur, 40 km from Jalandhar, have showed the way in how sand mafia should be dealt with. They not only seized 24 tractor-trailers loaded with sand, but also handed over their drivers to the police. Illegal mining has allegedly been going on unabated in the beds of Sutlej, Beas and their tributaries for the past quite some time. The villagers claim that they brought the matter to the notice of the administration on a number of occasions, but no action was taken against the “politically well-connected” sand mafia. Illegal mining has not only been causing a huge loss to the state exchequer, it is also posing a threat to the ecological balance in the region. Therefore, the villagers themselves decided to handle the issue. They assembled at a road linking the two villages with Nakodar at 5 am and cornered the vehicles to a vacant chunk of land in Parjian-Kalan village. Acting strategically, the villagers, led by former sarpanch Sukhraj Singh and Balkar Singh of Narangpur village, laid a trap, took possession of the vehicles loaded with sand and then informed Mehatpur Station House Officer Sukhwinder Singh. Shahkot Sub-Divisional Magistrate TN Passey was also informed. Gurmeet Singh, a villager, claimed that scores of tractor-trailers used to illegally ferry sand in the wee hours daily. “Mining adjacent to the Dhussi bundh has made our area prone to floods ahead of the monsoon,” he said. Passey said, “I have instructed the police to visit the spot and take legal action against the erring persons.” He, however, said the area where the illegal mining was going on fell in Ludhiana district. Therefore, the Ludhiana administration would have to act against them, he said. A case under Section 21 of the Mining Act has been registered against the 24 tractor-trailer drivers.