The Tamil Nadu Sand Lorry Owners Federation (TNSLOF) on Thursday (June 25) demanded that the State government run sand quarries and desilt the Stanley Reservoir in Mettur.

TNSLOF State president Sella. Rajamani said the quarries were closed after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) searches during the tenure of the DMK government in September 2023.

Owing to this, lakhs of drivers employed at over 55,000 sand lorries lost their jobs and were suffering from debts. No court has stayed the functioning of sand quarries. The government should inspect rivers in the state, identify where higher sand deposits are available and open sand quarries, Mr. Rajamani added.

Stating that the government should run the sand quarries to prevent irregularities, Mr. Rajamani said the Public Works Department (PWD) should directly sell the sand online and provide sand to all lorries at the same price.

The government should give two units of sand to six-wheeler lorries and three units of sand to 10-wheeler lorries. Lorries with 12, 14, and 16 wheels should not be given sand loads. If overload is found in a sand lorry, the PWD official concerned should face legal action.

A committee should be formed under District Collectors, and every month, the committee should inspect the sand quarries. If any irregularity is found, action should be taken on the PWD officials in charge of the particular sand quarry. This would ensure the public gets sand at a fair price and ensure livelihood of sand lorry owners and drivers.

If dams across the States are desilted, sand lorries would get lakhs of units of sand, especially if the Mettur Dam is desilted. Sand would thus be available in the market, and it would pave the way for storing more water in dams.

Every month, a grievance redressal day should be conducted at collectorates regarding protecting natural resources with the participation of Water Resources, Natural Resources, Revenue, Police and Transport department officials as well as stone quarry and sand lorry owners, Mr. Rajamani added.