People’s representatives at the local level are active in the extraction and supply of boulders, sand and aggregate. A case of illegal and perilous exploitation of nature thriving in the local federal units of southern Lalitpur.

Shivahari Ghimire and Ramhari Karki: Centre for Investigative Journalism-Nepal

Case 1

Bishnu Timalsina of Bhattedanda, Lalitpur is the ward chairman of Bagmati-3 and the spokesperson for the rural municipality. As the owner of Kanti Construction Private Limited, which supplies sand, boulders and aggregate, he is busy excavating and selling gravel and stones.

A mine operated by an elected representative in Lele.

The Khani Khola and Thosne Khala streams and the sides of Kanti Highway in the local unit are his sources for extracting sand and boulders. Rajkumar Bhandari, proprietor of the Satdobato-based Prandevi Entreprises, says: “Ward Chair Timilsina, rural municipality chairman Bir Bahadur Lopchan, and Godavari-6 ward Chairman Bishnu Man Maharjan are among those who supply sand, aggregate and boulders, which we buy.”

Before his election, Timilsina was a contractor. He has two companies called Kantipath and Gauri Parvati Construction in Hattiwan. Even as a people’s representative, he is busy as a contractor, using the four bulldozers that his companies own. Since he is usually not found in the ward office, he calls service-seekers to his place. “Two months ago, when we needed the recommendation for my brother’s citizenship, we didn’t find him at the ward office,” Krishna Timilsina of Chhapeli said.

On September 15, when we reached the ward office for reporting, Timilsina was not there. He was found selling tipper loads of sand and boulders at a mine in Bhattedanda. Timilsina admits that he’s a contractor as well. “I’ve been involved in the excavation and building works for long. I can’t quit this just because I’m a people’s representative. I don’t hamper public services, I serve people even by inviting them where I am,” said Timilsina.

Bagmati rural municipality Chairman Bir Bahadur Lopchan also has a sand mine in Bhatttedanda spread over nearly four ropanis. Since the sand mine was found on the slope above Chhapeli Bazaar while cutting the track for Kanti Highway eight months ago, Lopchan has busied himself excavating the sand. Navaraj Karki, a Bhattedanda resident, says: “Most people’s representatives are involved in supplying sand and stones.” Lopchan argues that he had been mining gravel and boulders for the post-earthquake reconstruction without taking personal benefits.

Case 2

Ward Chairman of Godavari Municipality-6 Bishnu Man Maharjan supplies sand and crushed stones from the Sagarmatha Stone Crusher Private Limited, Lele. Solely owned by Maharjan, registration of the company has not been renewed for three years, according to the letter sent by Godavari Municipality to the District Coordination Committee on November 14, 2018. Interestingly, Maharjan heads the mines section at the municipality. He has been accused of destroying the forest area in Lele. According to Laxman Rana, a National Human Rights Commission official and Tikabhairav local, the forest in his area has been denuded due to its exploitation by the people’s representatives. “Water sources have dried up, frequent movements of tipper have damaged road,” he said. “Even the people’s representatives are involved in such illegal activities.”

The Devichaur Community Forest cleared for stone quarrying in Tikabhairav, Lalitpur.

According to Suresh Tamang, secretary at the Dumsidol Community Forest Conservation Committee, Maharjan’s felling trees to operate his stone quarry has denuded the forest area in the past six months. The source of water used in Tikabhairav has gone dry. “Despite this, the municipality and the forest office can do nothing to the ward chairman,” said Tamang. Maharjan, who has been operating the crusher and mining industries without renewing their registrations, owns tippers including those bearing registrations Na 2 Ka 58, Ba 2 Ka 6132 and Ba 2 Ka 2062. Maharjan, who is mostly not available in the ward office, was found cutting a track using a bulldozer on a public land in Tikabhairav, on August 30 this year.

Since being elected to the local council, Maharjan is accused of digging clear the community forests and slopes of Tikabhairav, Lele and Devichaur areas. The haphazard excavation has imperiled the hills in the Lele area. A settlement is at risk due to illegal stone quarrying below it at Upper Burulchuli. Even in the rainy season, springs don’t appear in the Lele-Tikabhairav area, thanks to the proliferation in stone mining. “The lush forests of Devichaur and Dumsidole were lost to stone mining,” says Laxman Rana of Tikabhairav. “Nobody speaks out about this lawlessness close to the Capital.”

Ward Chair Maharjan says in defence: “A people’s representative’s post is not permanent. One can’t leave regular profession.”

Case 3

Sukbahadur Lama, ward chairman of Godavari Municipality-8, operates the Shining Washing Centre at the Khahare stream that flows near the ward office. Lama has changed the course of the Bagmati river to excavate boulders and sand and to set up a crusher plant. By leaving the nearly 50 ropanis of land next to the ward office in ruins after excessively extracting boulders and sand, Lama has put the ward office building in peril. “The ward chairman is about to finish off the hillocks and slopes through cutting,” a Dukuchhap local says. “The people’s representatives have put the settlement at risk.”

Naresh, the brother of Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa, and former lawmaker Yogendra Ghising are also involved in Lama’s mining. Admitting this partnership, Lama said he had given Ghising 10 percent stake in the industry in order to avert the removal of the washing centre for  constructing the Fast Track. “Top political leaders are also involved in the companies that excavate aggregate and sand in this area,” Ward Chair Lama said without mincing words.

While Ghising accepted that he had a stake in the mining business, the minister’s brother Naresh Thapa said he had invested in the sand and stone quarries a few years ago but he had washed his hands off it now.

Case 4

Rajkumar Lama, a ward member of Bagmati Rural Municipality-4, operates the Pyutar sand washing centre. A resident of Pyutar, he is also an excavator driver. His earthmovers are used in almost all the road projects in the local federal unit. He bagged the Rs 2 million contract for the road linking Gimdi and Pyutar last year. This monsoon, the bridge connecting Malta and Pyutar sank as he used excavator to extract sand. “I’ve invested in this [business] for long, and supplied sand and stones. The profit is not good while the weather created troubles in the rainy season.”

Crusher plants and sand mines illegally operated near the settlement in Tikabhairav.

Not just ward chairmen and members, Godavari Municipality Mayor Gajendra Maharjan himself is involved in sand mining and stone crushing. The mayor went to the extent of misusing his official letter head to acquire and renew the permission for his sand mining plant. In his letter, dispatch number 1125, addressed to the District Coordination Committee on November 14 last year, Maharjan states that the registration of 22 mines had not been renewed and that they had been “permitted to conduct business”. Even today, the 22 mines and crusher plants are operating with mayor’s permission.

Maharjan is an example of how people’s representatives are misusing the authority of the local level over the excavation of natural and river resources. Maharjan had a depot of sand in Chapagaun before being elected to the local government. After taking office, he got the key to the resources. Ward 8 Chairman Suk Bahadur Lama says: “The mayor has issued mining permits as he pleases.”

Mukesh Maharjan, a local, says: “People’s representatives should put an end to such practices. Who will stop them when they themselves are supplying stones and sand?”

Absence of rule or system

Environmentalist Bhusan Tuladhar is a witness to the exploitation of natural resources by the people’s representatives without care for ecological and environmental importance. “Local governments have started excessive excavation. Even lush forest areas rich in water sources have been made centres of excavation and supply [of natural resources],” says Tuladhar.

With the rise in such illegal activity, groups are charging sand, boulder and crushed stone carriers by setting up a fake organization. Such groups collect Rs 800 per tipper and Rs 400 per mini truck. According to the Lalitpur District Administration Office, such groups and organizations have not been registered anywhere.

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Ramkrishna Sapkota of the Metropolitan Police Circle Chapagaun, around 300 tippers make daily rounds to the area. At that rate, the fee illegally levied by the groups amounts to Rs 3.6 million monthly.

Then chief district officer of Lalitpur Prem Raj Joshi, however, said he was not aware of the illegal extortion. “No organizations have been registered in Pharsidol, Lele and Nakkhu areas to collect donations,” Joshi said. “If local goons have done that, we’ll take action immediately.” CDO Bhagirath Pande, who was transferred to Lalitpur on September 3, said he would reach a decision after sorting out legal and illegal mines.

Following growing disputes over the mining, the District Coordination Committee held a meeting of stakeholders on December 12, 2018. The meeting concluded that most of the crusher and mining industries had not renewed their registration and decided to shut them. Godavari Municipality, which got the responsibility to shut the illegally operating mines from the meeting, has not closed a single plant.

Godavari Mayor Gajendra Maharjan did not give a clear answer on this. He said there was a plan to make the mining and crusher plants systematic. “What happened in the past is a different thing. The local level has been empowered now,” said Maharjan. “We have drawn up a plan to shut the mines that don’t meet the set standards.”

Flouting the law

Chapter 5 of the Mines and Minerals Rules prohibits mining near places, houses, schools and ecological regions that have been marked for national and public good and security. Excavation is banned also within 50 metres of old memorials, ancient cities, cemetery, crematorium, public way, ghat, embankment, water channel, pipeline, fort, gadhi, chhauni, temple, mosque, church, houses and factories.

An office set up in Godavari-Chapagaun for unauthorised levying of charges on tippers exporting building materials.

Such excavation is permitted only 500 meters away from a school or residential area. But the mining and crusher plants in Lele, Tikabhairav and Nallu areas are within the school and residential areas. “Mining and crushing continues throughout the night, creating high-pitch noise,” Dipak Timilsina, a Lele resident, said. “Here’s no condition to stay home.”

Krishnadev Jha, information officer at the Department of Mines and Geology, said mines had been exploited after the local level was given the responsibility of excavation.

“No mines in Lalitpur meet the environmental standards. Most of them operate based on political access,” said Jha. “No attention has been paid to any aspect such as school, health post, forest area, sources of water and settlement.”

Clause 11 (2) of the Local Government Operation Act-2017 concerns the use of boulders, pebbles, sand, soil and other minerals within a municipality or rural municipality. Regulations and work procedures have been formulated to supplement the Act but Godavari Municipality has disregarded the law while permitting stone quarrying, sand mining and crushing at 22 places.

“Until the people’s representatives took charge, there was no such lawlessness in [accessing] mines and river materials,” says Tekraj Panthi, former administrative officer at Godavari Municipality. “People’s representatives have made exploitation of natural resources their source of income.”

The sand, boulders and pebbles sourced in Lalitpur reach as far as Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, Dhading and Makwanpur. Following a complaint about the haphazard mining in places including Lele, Tikabhairav and Devichaur, the National Vigilance Centre had asked clarifications from Godavari Mayor Maharjan and then chief of Lalitpur police Senior Superintendent Rabindra Dhanuk.