The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Centre if it had a policy to keep a tab on illegal sand mining, PTI reported. The apex court expressed its concerns over the possible drying up of rivers as a consequence of rampant illegal sand mining.

The bench, comprising Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta, was hearing a clutch petitions on the illegal sand mining in Rajasthan. “You cannot say that just because you want to construct a house, you will mine sand,” the bench told the Centre. “Do you have a policy for it [to stop illegal sand mining]? Tomorrow, they will also start mining in the Ganga and Yamuna. It [the rivers] will dry up. You cannot do this. You must have some alternative for this.”

The bench set the date for the next hearing after three weeks.