Ludhiana: Tension continues to escalate in Khera Bet village as villagers protesting against alleged “illegal mining” forced workers to remove one of the poclain machines from Satluj river on Sunday night. The removal took place after protestors, who have been running a pukka morcha near the river, mounted pressure on the agency carrying out what the administration has termed “desilting.”Local sources said protestors compelled the agency to pull out one of the three poclain machines from the desilting site. They added that on Monday a team from the civil administration and police reached the spot and spoke to protesters in an attempt to defuse tension.Ravinderpal Singh Raju, a key face of the ongoing protest, confirmed that one of the poclains was indeed taken out of the river area on Sunday night. He alleged that the team that visited the protest site on Monday threatened to register cases against them and maintained that protesters were prepared to face FIRs to stop illegal mining.Gurdev Singh of Noorpur Bet, another protester, said while the administration described the activity as “desilting,” removal of silt for commercial use amounted to “illegal mining.” He added that the embankment near Khaira Bet village was already weak and such activity could worsen the situation. According to him, if further mining continued, the embankment would not be able to withstand flooding, increasing the risk of water entering the village.Protesters said they would continue their agitation until a permanent solution was provided and they would not allow what they described as “mining under the guise of desilting.”What admn says The district administration recently stated that an allotted desilting site exists in the Khaira Bet complex in Ludhiana district and that the activity is legal. It said that the use of heavy machinery is permitted because work is time-bound. According to the official statement, Khaira Bet was hit by floods in 2025, causing heavy damage to nearby settlements and agricultural land. Sand and silt had deposited in front of the bandh, prompting the proposal to desilt the area to widen the flow of water and dig a trench to divert the flow for protecting the bandh, settlements and farmland.The statement added that repair and new boulder works—such as A-spur, studs and revetments — were also proposed along the bandh. Strengthening of the bandh through excavation inside the river was part of the plan. The administration assured that any damage to roads or property would be repaired and that these measures were intended to reduce pressure on the bandh and protect agricultural land and lives.
