QUESTION 7
GS3
10 marks
Coastal sand mining, whether legal or illegal, poses one of the biggest threats to our environment. Analyze the impact of sand mining along India’s coasts, citing specific examples.
WRITE IN
7 min
150 words
What the examiner wants
Analyse the environmental impact of sand mining along India's coasts, with examples.
Analyse with examplesAnswer exactly what the question asks.
Demand-wise check
- 1Impacts: coastal erosion, loss of beaches, saltwater intrusion into aquifers, damage to turtle nesting, mangroves, fisheries, livelihoods≈30 words
- 2Examples: Alappad (Kerala) black sand mining, Tamil Nadu garnet/beach sand mining (V.V. Mineral case), Konkan coast≈30 words
- 3Regulation: CRZ, Sustainable Sand Mining Guidelines 2016, Offshore Areas Mineral Act amendments≈30 words
- 4Measures: alternatives (M-sand), monitoring≈30 words
Open in about 20 words and close in about 20.
Answer plan
ImpactsExamplesRegulationMeasuresConclusion
Where marks usually go
- River sand mining instead of coastal
- No named coast, e.g. Alappad (Kerala) or Tamil Nadu beach sand mining
Draw this
- Coastal cross-section with mining effects
Value addition
- ExampleAlappad village in Kollam lost large areas of land to decades of beach mineral sand mining; locals protested in 2018–19 (#SaveAlappad).Kerala Legislative Committee report
- CaseMadras High Court (2017) banned beach sand mining in Tamil Nadu and ordered a CBI probe into illegal mining.Madras High Court
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 17 ↗Reviewed PYQ reference
- Aniket Ranjan · AIR 48 · Page 15 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 41 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Aniket Ranjan · AIR 48 · Page 41 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.