The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids on five mining sites in Pathankot district on Thursday morning, targeting illegal sand and gravel extraction. Multiple teams fanned out around 6 am, halting operations at stone crushers in Narot Jaimal Singh and other areas. Raids also took place in the Taragarh and Saili road areas, with the exercise expected to continue into the night.

ED officials searched the residences of two prominent businessmen and reportedly confiscated some documents. A property dealer and former sarpanch of Taragarh is also under investigation. No official comment was available, but the action triggered panic among those involved in the trade. Rumours spread quickly and many units suspended work.

Mining in Pathankot has long been a lucrative business, with estimates running into hundreds of crores annually. Influential figures, including politicians, are believed to have stakes in the trade. The district’s location near Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh has made it a hub for such activities.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has prohibited mining within 1 km of the International Border (IB) with Pakistan. Screening and stone-crushing units are banned within 2 km of the IB, following concerns raised by the Army and BSF that illegal mining trenches aid infiltration.

The National Green Tribunal has also banned sand and gravel extraction at several riverbed sites. In August 2022, the HC directed the Punjab Government and the BSF to stop all mining in and across the Ravi near the IB. The court noted that illegal mining had contributed to the destruction of the Chakki river railway bridge connecting Pathankot with Joginder Nagar in Himachal Pradesh.