ANDHRA CM DIRECTS OFFICIALS TO TAKE IMMEDIATE MEASURES FOR SUPPLY OF ADEQUATE SAND TO CONSTRUCTION SECTOR

VIJAYAWADA: Taking stock of the sand availability in the State, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday directed officials to take immediate measures for the supply of adequate sand to construction sector.

He instructed them to ensure that constructions under progress are not hindered for want of sand. The officials should explore the feasibility of supplying sand stored at stock points, and come up with a plan of action to address the current crisis, he said.

Naidu also directed the officials to draft a new sand policy in such a manner that it does not cause any problems to the people. The officials should come up with comprehensive information and suggestions, besides laying emphasis on controlling the sand price and address its scarcity.

The officials explained the sand policies implemented from 2014 to 2019 and the policies introduced by the previous regime. They also mentioned the impact of the free sand policy brought in 2016, and how it was scrapped and a new policy was introduced after 2019, resulting in sand scarcity.

The sand policy of the previous regime increased the prices of sand and caused scarcity of the construction material, and it affected the entire construction sector. Handing over the management of sand queries to private persons and agencies, lack of proper monitoring system using CCTV cameras and GPS tracking, led to large scale illegal sand mining. The total quantity of sand mined and sold was not recorded properly, they informed.

Taking stock of the condition of roads in the State, the Chief Minister said due to the negligence of the previous regime the roads were badly affected. Emphasising the need for undertaking repairs of the roads in their entirety, Naidu said the officials should focus on filling potholes and repair the roads that need immediate attention.

He sought a report on the length of roads that were damaged and to what extent. At the same time, Naidu asked the officials to study the new technologies that can be adopted for the repair of roads in a better manner. Despite financial constraints, the government will give top priority to road repairs, he said.

Emphasising the need to initiate measures to control the increasing prices of essential commodities, he asked the officials to come up with a plan to check the prices of rice, red gram, tomato and onions.

The officials informed him that the increasing gap between demand and supply led to the steep rise in the prices of red gram.

The Chief Minister asked the officials to explore the possibility of importing essential commodities wherever needed to control the prices.

2024-07-03T04:28:23Z dg43tfdfdgfd