• One accused injured in encounter, arrested after Haryana Police officer run over by truck during illegal mining check, reports NDTV

A deputy superintendent of police (DSP) investigating illegal stone-mining was killed when a truck he had signalled to stop in Haryana's Nuh district drove into him, officials said.Tauru DSP Surendra Singh Bishnoi had signalled a dumper-truck to a halt to check documents. But the driver sped on, running over him, reports PTI. The officer's gunman and his driver jumped aside to safety, but the DSP was hit.

Bishnoi was rushed to hospital where doctors declared him dead, police told PTI.

Bishnoi had received information that stones were being illegally mined at Pachgaon near the Aravalli mountain range, reports ndtv.com. He reached the spot around 11 am on Tuesday along with a police team.

On spotting the police personnel, those involved in the illegal mining started fleeing. The senior officer stood in the way and signalled the stone-laden vehicles to stop. But the driver of the truck ran him over, killing him on the spot.

Two other policemen had a narrow escape as they jumped aside. The accused then fled the area.

Police have launched an operation to look for the accused. In a condolence message put out by its official Twitter handle, Haryana police said, “No effort shall be spared in bringing the offenders to face justice”.

According to the Economic Survey of Haryana for 2021-22, tabled before the Assembly on March 8, a total of 21,450 illegal mining cases were detected in the state, including transportation of minerals without valid documents, from 2014-15 up to September 2021.

Despite a Supreme Court ban order dating back to 2009, mining has continued unabated at several places in the Aravalli region.

Earlier this year, a citizens' group, Aravalli Bachao Citizens Movement, approached the National Green Tribunal alleging that illegal mining was rampant in at least 16 places in the region, reports ndtv.com.

"In many locations, substantial portions of the hills have been mined and taken away and, in some instances, completely razed to the ground," the petitioners told the tribunal.

They also alleged police inaction on many complaints of illegal mining.

The tribunal then constituted a joint committee of representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the central and state pollution control boards, state police and mining and forest officers. This panel, the tribunal said, would visit the identified locations to check if illegal mining was on.