Granite scam: Retired cops depose before HC-appointed officer

Senior IAS officer U Sgayam, inquiring into illegal mining of granite in the district, today recorded the statement of nine retired police officers, who were allegedly forced to sell their plots to a granite firm which dumped waste materials and prevented them from building houses on the sites.
Police have so far registered 79 cases against granite firms which allegedly ruined farming activities by destroying water bodies and forcing people to sell their lands.
Nearly 150 members of the Jangid Nagar here were allegedly forced to sell their house sites to PRP Granites, which was very influential during the DMK regime.

As part of the probe, Sagayam, appointed by the Madras High Court to go into the illegal mining, today recorded the statements of nine retired police officers, officials said.
Meanwhile, DRO Murugiah and Deputy Collector Rajaram are probing the role of revenue officials in abetting the "fraud" committed by the granite firms.
Officials said the statement of the affected people had been videographed to give a clear picture to the court.
Sagayam, as the then Madurai District Collector, had in 2011 estimated the loss to the state Exchequer due to illegal granite mining at around Rs 16,000 over a period of years.