CM Sukhu Demands Clear Rules for Scientific River Dredging

CM Sukhu met Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav in New Delhi to press for clear rules on scientific river dredging in Himachal Pradesh. Highlight-level floods deposit heavy silt, rocks, and debris in riverbeds, choking water flow and threatening nearby communities, roads, and bridges. CM Sukhu stressed that clearing river channels is an urgent disaster prevention measure that must be treated separately from commercial mining.

To speed up operations, the Chief Minister requested a dedicated category for river dredging on the PARIVESH portal and an exemption from compensatory afforestation requirements, explaining that debris removal does not divert forest land for commercial use. He also called for clear guidelines to process dredging proposals in a time-bound manner. Assuring the Centre that all work would strictly follow scientific studies during non-monsoon periods, Sukhu noted that revenue from extracted material would fund forest conservation. Union Minister Bhupender Yadav assured full support, promising early guidelines tailored to Himachal’s disaster management needs.