Mangaluru: With the onset of the monsoon expected to halt construction activity soon, builders and contractors in the city are scrambling to procure sand, amid an acute shortage that has significantly pushed up construction costs. The cost of building a standard house has increased by nearly Rs 2.25 lakh due to the spike in sand prices.Four years after sand mining was stalled in Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) areas, contractors and engineers continue to struggle to complete projects within approved budgets.Speaking to reporters on Friday, Satish Jogi, vice-president of the Civil Contractors Association, said the sand shortage had persisted for the last three to four years. One of the primary reasons, contractors said, was the continued ban on sand mining in CRZ areas.Ujwal D’Souza, past chairman of Association of Consulting Civil Engineers (India), Mangaluru Centre, said the National Green Tribunal (NGT) was yet to give its approval for resuming sand mining in CRZ regions.As a result, construction costs have risen more than threefold. “Sand that earlier cost Rs 20 per cubic foot from CRZ areas is now sourced from non-CRZ regions at Rs 70 per cubic foot,” D’Souza said.Contractors also pointed out that sand procured from non-CRZ areas such as Adyar, Uppinangady and Puttur is coarser and not ideal for construction. “This leads to nearly 50% wastage,” they said.The fine-quality sand found at river mouths where rivers meet the sea—typically sourced from CRZ areas—is preferred for construction due to its superior binding properties, contractors added.Sand prices shoot upMahabala Kottary, president of Civil Contractors Association, Mangaluru, said that with the stoppage of sand mining in the CRZ zone, sand prices have only increased in the market through illegal procurements. “For urgent use, people are sourcing sand from Kundapur in Udupi and from Kerala for Rs 24,000-25,000 for 300 cft (which is considered one load). We do not know if they have permits, but they claim it is from the CRZ region,” said Kottary. This is almost a fourfold increase from the Rs 6,000-Rs 8,000 a load that CRZ sand here would have cost them.He added that a standard 2,500 sq ft house would need 15 loads of sand, but with the Rs 15,000 per load increase (from Rs 6,000 to Rs 21,000 on average), costs would rise by Rs 2.25 lakh.Meanwhile, the SandBazaar app that was started for ordering sand from non-CRZ regions is also defunct, Kottary said. “We are scared to put our money as we do not get sand, nor the refund. About 40% of the construction cost goes in taxes,” he said.In most cases, M-sand, which is obtained from crushing black stones, is laced with a lot of dust instead of the double-washed product that Bengaluru and Mysuru get, Kottary added.Contractors said the supply of good M-sand also falls short, covering only up to 40% of the requirement.
