3 States chip in to stop illegal sand mining in Chambal sanctuary

Subject: Environment

Section: Places in news

Concept :

Three States namely Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh have begun a joint action to put an end to the illegal sand mining in the National Chambal Sanctuary, situated at the trijunction of these states.
Coordination between the three States was discussed at a high-level meeting in Jaipur with special emphasis on protecting the fragile ecosystem critical for the breeding of Gharials.
National Chambal Sanctuary is known for the critically endangered Gharial populations. Gharials are a species of fish-eating crocodiles.
Illegal sand mining is threatening the flora and fauna of the sanctuary and close collaborations are required to address the issues associated with illegal mining.

National Chambal Sanctuary

It was set up in 1979 as a riverine sanctuary along an approximately 425 km length of the Chambal River.
Its ravines stretches over 2-6 km wide along the Chambal River near the tri-point of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The National Chambal Sanctuary is listed as an Important Bird Area (IBA) and is a proposed Ramsar site.
The Chambal river which is a tributary of River Yamuna cuts through the mazes of ravines and hills in the sanctuary.

Ecological Significance:

The National Chambal Sanctuary is home to critically endangered Gharial (small crocodiles), the red-crowned roof turtle and the endangered Ganges River dolphin.
Chambal supports the largest population of Gharials in the wild.
Only known place where nesting of Indian Skimmers is recorded in large numbers.
Chambal supports 8 rare turtle species out of the 26 found in the country.
Chambal is one of the cleanest rivers in the country.
Chambal supports more than 320 resident and migrant birds.

Economic Support:

Locals directly depended on various resources of the Sanctuary. They farm along the river, extract river water for irrigation, practice sustenance and commercial fishing, and quarry sand.

Chambal River

It is one of the most pollution-free rivers of India.
It’s a 960 km. long river that originates at the SingarChouri peak in the northern slopes of the Vindhya mountains (Indore, Madhya Pradesh). From there, it flows in North direction in Madhya Pradesh for a length of about 346 km and then follows a north-easterly direction for a length of 225 km through Rajasthan.
It enters U.P. and flows for about 32 km before joining the Yamuna River in Etawah District.
It is a rainfed river and its basin is bounded by the Vindhyan mountain ranges and the Aravallis. The Chambal and its tributaries drain the Malwa region of northwestern Madhya Pradesh.
Tributaries: Banas, Kali Sindh, Parbati.
Main Power Projects/ Dam: Gandhi Sagar Dam, Rana Pratap Sagar Dam, Jawahar Sagar Dam, and Kota Barrage.