One of the many reasons why YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress party fell from a historic 151 seats to just 11 in the recent elections was due to the controversial sand policy introduced in 2019. The by-product of this policy was rampant corruption and acute shortage of sand, leading to massive public rebellion. Jagan failed to take corrective measures and finally faced the wrath of the electorate.
Now that the NDA government has replaced Jagan, there are high hopes and expectations from Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu to quickly rectify many of these irregularities. Soon after coming to power, the Naidu government scrapped the previous sand policy and introduced an interim mechanism aimed at making sand easily available free of charge, except for operational expenses and necessary levies and taxes.
Naidu and other NDA leaders have made grand claims that the new policy has brought greater transparency and accessibility in the sale of sand. Unfortunately, the reality is the exact opposite of what they claim, as there is no clarity or transparency in the implementation of the new policy. What is reportedly happening on the ground is a black market and sales at exorbitant prices.
In some districts, middlemen are buying sand at Rs 1,067 per tonne and illegally hoarding tonnes of sand to sell at a higher price of Rs 1,800 to Rs 2,000. A black market is rife in some areas and there have been numerous complaints that sand is not available to the common people due to an acute shortage in stock depots.
Despite strict instructions from Chief Minister Naidu to all concerned authorities for effective and smooth implementation of the new policy, there is a lack of clarity and transparency in sand allocation at all levels which will have far-reaching repercussions if not addressed and rectified immediately.
It is time for the NDA government to focus on how new policies are being implemented on the ground and ensure that the mistakes of the previous government are not repeated.
Tags Chandrbaabu
