Manganese Mafia Flourishing in AP
posted on Mar 21, 2012 @ 4:53PM
According to reliable sources, after liquor mafia, coal mafia, mining mafia and narcotics mafia, manganese mafia is flourishing in Andhra Pradesh for the past two years with the patronage of some state ministers belonging to Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts.
These aides of the ministers are making crores of rupees by smuggling manganese ore in to the state from Chhattisgarh and Odisha. They clandestinely purchase the ore at very cheaper rates and smuggle it in to AP by bribing the concerned officials in the state. The ore which is purchased at Rs. 2000/- per tonne in Chhattisgarh and Odisha is being sold in AP for 14000/- per tonne. For this, the mafia has established illegal storage points at Ramabhadrapuram, Makkuva, Badangi, Garividi, Saluru, Darti Rajeru and some surrounding places.
The government has given licences to some people in these areas to deal in materials like minerals, sand and granite-metal. The manganese smugglers obtain transit documents from these licenced dealers and take the ore to various places for sale. In this way the manganese mafia is flourishing multifold in the state aided by bribes and political patronage.