Chittoor police crackdown on sand smuggling

The Chittoor district police have intensified their crackdown on illegal sand mining and smuggling. On Saturday night, during vehicle checks on the Vellore road, in Gudipala mandal, police seized two sand-laden lorries and arrested one driver.

According to the Gudipala police, a special team formed by Additional SP S.R. Rajasekhar Raju conducted inspections at the Naraharipeta check-post following information about illegal sand movement towards Tamil Nadu. When the police signalled to two lorries coming from Chittoor to stop, the driver of one vehicle abandoned the lorry and fled the spot, while the other driver was apprehended.

The arrested driver was identified as Shanmugam, a resident of Chittoor. During questioning, he reportedly confessed that the sand had been loaded from the Neeva riverbed in the Puthalapattu area and was being ‘clandestinely’ transported to several locations in Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, Salem, and Vellore. Police registered a case and investigation is on.