MAWKYRWAT: The Chief Executive Member of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council, Hispreaching Son Shylla on Thursday declared that the “chapter of uranium mining in Meghalaya was closed” and there would be no discussion or negotiation whatsoever in future.
Speaking to media persons after visiting the site at Mawthabah, South West Khasi Hills where Atomic Minerals Directorate (AMD) conducted exploratory drilling of uranium recently, Shylla said the KHADC, through the Executive Committee (EC), wanted to declare here in Mawthabah that the closure of the proposed uranium project is final and there will be no discussion or negotiation whatsoever in the future.
“We want our youths who were protesting against uranium mining in all these years to finally find peace on this issue so that we can do many other things which the “Jaitbynriew” urgently needed,” Shylla said, adding that the Regional Director of AMD on Wednesday had informed and gave in writing that it has closed all its operations in Meghalaya.
Shylla also lambasted the AMD for taking advantage of the ignorance of the people. “We understood that the AMD committed mistake by making the headman to sign the documents. They have taken advantage of the ignorance of our people in the name of Government of India”.
“We want to declare here that from now onwards, no headman, village dorbar, clans or land owners can give any kind of permission when it comes to minerals without informing the KHADC. Even the district administration and the state government should be informed and there will be no uranium mining in the state without the consent of the people,” Shylla said.
He added that from now onwards, any agency of the government of India which gets only the permission of the headman, will be branded as illegal.
Meanwhile, KSU general secretary Donald Thabah expressed surprise over the drilling conducted by AMD in the recent weeks because it had already conducted survey and exploratory mining or drilling since the early 1990s.
“Several holes covered with cements have been found in many places in this area and some of them were cracked,” Thabah said, adding that the claim by the AMD of surveying other minerals like mica, sillimanite, coal and others holds no water because there are other departments which are doing that and AMD was dealing only with atomic or radioactive minerals.
“If there is something behind the re-drilling of uranium in these areas we don’t know. All we know is that not only AMD or UCIL, but research centre like the Babha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai used to give different kinds of projects. But the action of AMD is against the will of the people and the decision of the KHADC and the state government,” he said.
On the other hand, Extra Assistant Commissioner, South West Khasi Hills, LK Diengdoh informed that the AMD has taken all the burnt machines and moved away from Mawthabah and Wahkaji on July 31.
Asked what action would be taken against the AMD for bypassing and conducting operations in the district without the permission of the district administration, Diengdoh said that the administration has done all the formalities and submitted the report to the state government and it was up to the government to take a decision on the matter.
The headman of Mawthabah village, Hes Lyngdoh Sangriang, who was part of the team that visited the drilling site, claimed that he gave the NOC to the AMD on the trust that it is the agency of the Government of India.
When asked how can he give permission for uranium exploration without getting instruction from the KHADC, Sangriang said, “If they were individuals or private companies, I would have properly checked whether they got permission or not from the KHADC or the deputy commissioner’s office, but it was an agency of the Government of India and I thought that they know the rules. They said they will only collect samples and that is why we accepted and gave the NOC. Now I know that I have committed a mistake by bypassing the District Council”, he said.
When asked whether he would also give permission for uranium mining, Sangriang said the people of the area did not accept mining during the public hearing held in 2007.
Deputy CEM Teilinia Thangkhiew, Executive Members Neil Antonio War, Latiplang Kharkongor, Blanding Warjri and Ricky Shullai, MDCs, leaders of the KSU and HYC also visited the area.
