A joint force operation has begun to recover stolen white stones in Sylhet. In this operation, which began after midnight on Wednesday (August 13), trucks loaded with stones were stopped on the road and several boats loaded with stones were seized.

Earlier, a 5-point decision was taken in coordination with the Sylhet district administration to prevent stone looting and return stolen stones. According to the decision, joint forces will be on duty 24 hours a day in the Jaflong ECA area and the white stone area, round-the-clock presence of joint forces at police check posts in Gowainghat and Companiganj, operations to stop illegal crushing machines, arrest those involved in stone theft, and return the recovered stones to their original location.

Recently, due to the inaction of the administration and the rampant looting of influential people, various stone quarries including the white stone of Sylhet are under threat. Despite the movements of local and national political parties, human chains, press conferences and complaints, the looting has not stopped.

When the news about the matter was published in the media, there was a storm of criticism across the country. Environmental Advisor Syeda Rizwana Hasan expressed her disappointment, saying, “I was able to stop stone mining in Sylhet for four years as an environmental activist, but now I can’t even become an advisor.”

Later, after visiting the ACC’s Sylhet office, a 9-member investigation team said that influential businessmen, high-ranking officials and locals may have been involved in the looting, and the local administration is most responsible for it.

Local residents and tourists are complaining that this looting has been going on for a long time with the patronage of influential circles, which is not only threatening natural resources, but also Sylhet’s tourism industry.