issues concerning uranium mines in jharkhand

8/3/2019 Issues Concerning Uranium Mines in Jharkhand

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Issues Concerning Uranium

Mines in Jharkhand


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Issues Concerning UraniumMines in Jharkhand

By

1) Debashish Khargharia

2) Kumar Gautam

3) Piyush Saraogi

4) Satyarth Jaiswal

5) Vaibhav Bansal

Disclaimer : The primary basis of this presentation is the interaction with two social activists and few villagers and theunderlying assumption that everything that the social activists and the villagers told to us was the truth.


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An Excerpt.

DYAN LOHAR was born in Jaduguda,Jharkhand, with one eye, no nose and a mouthtoo small for his own fingers. He has nine fingersand seven toes. Now 15, he lies on a cot as his

mother feeds him rice porridge in small scoops.The past 15 years of 43-year-old Kuntis life havebeen devoted to a son whose worldview isexpressed only by grunts and foot taps. She is

angry, bitter and suffers from depression. Thereare so many kids like Dyan in the nearby villages.Go disturb them, she grumbles. We did, andfound 18-year-old Mithun Patrao, who fares

slightly better than Dyan he can utter six


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Objective

To study the conditions of villages

affected by the mining practices of

UCIL


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Methodology

Question Based

Based on health conditions, living conditions,

working environment in UCIL for laborers, demands of

people and actions taken by UCIL

Experience Based

Listening to experiences and views of differentparties involved


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Methodology Contd.

People involved

Local public of affected villages

Workers at UCIL

Social Activists


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Uranium Corporation of India

UCIL is a centrally owned Public SectorUndertaking (PSU), under the Departmentof Atomic Energy for Uranium mining andUranium Processing

Founded in 1967

Mines at Jadugora, Bhatin, Narwapahar,Turamdih and Banduhurang

Contributes 3% (4th highest in the country)to national power requirement


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Mr. Ghanshyam Biruli


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Mr. Ghanshyam Biruli

President, Jharkhand

Organisation Against

Radiation (JOAR)

Village Telaitand

Earlier President of

Jharkhand Adivasi Bistapit NirojgarSangh


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Issues

Decreasing women fertility,miscarriage (47 in 1000) and birth ofstill-born babies

Children disabled, blood cancer andTB (140/1000) in adults

Outsiders are refusing to marry locals

Down To earth magazine reports areawithin 5km radius not fit for settlement

Frogs, fishes, cattle, etc have alsodied

Hospitals charge Rs 2000 for check-


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Issues

Tailing Ponds reducing their fertileland

Faulty and unsafe design

Half of village population work in UCILmainly without proper safety dress

Not allowed to measure radiation

levels Pressure from govt., fear of losing jobs

and 2-year famine have made

Mazdoor Unions defunct


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Demands

Protective measures against Radiation

Rehabilitation and Employment for thedisplaced

Participation in Public Hearings

Information about Radiation Levels

Enhanced safety measures during

work and disposal of tailing andradioactive wastes


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Shri Sagar Bisra (An employee of UCIL &

also a social activist)

Village named Dhodanga

Banduhurang open-cast mines


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Issues

Employment

Rehabilitation Policy

Absorption of large number ofdisplaced workers as contractlabourers

Compensation : Negligible and someeven pending


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Demands

Proper, permanent rehabilitation andresettlement

Employment to all displaced adults Better & quicker compensation

Proper and regular medical check-up

of all. Public disclosure of Radiation Levels


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IDPD Survey

IDPD conducted a health survey in 2007 thatlooked at 2,118 families within 2.5 km of the mines.It found that 9.5 percent of newborns die each yeardue to extreme physical deformities.

UCIL officials are dismissive about the allegationsof health hazards due to radiation. In the words ofUCIL chairman Ramendra Gupta, The uranium weproduce is of low grade and our mines have a

density of only about 0.4 percent of uranium for allthe drilling we do.

Our Question to UCIL :- Then why not call foran independent inquiry ?


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AERB Rules & The Reality

RULE Open-cast mines should be fenced,according to UCIL guidelines. They should bewell-engineered and designed taking all

possible measures to save the public from anyradiation exposure.

REALITY At Banduhurang, there is no barbedwire, no prohibitory signs, no warnings aboutradiation and no demarcation of territory.

Source : http://www.aerb.gov.in/


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RULE Control measures should be taken toreduce the spread of radioactivity through air,water and by contamination from waste rockpiles

REALITY At Banduhurang, the waste liesscattered in mounds of radioactive rocks anddust, not just on the outskirts of villagesbordering the mine, but even inside the village.


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Open Cast Mines

Village dangerously close to the blastarea

High frequency of blasts more than

the government norms Dumping of waste on the cultivable

land of the village

No proper compensation for the landacquired


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Recommendations

Need of Co-ordination among thevarious villages

Proper rehabilitation

Ensure safety of villagers from healthhazards due to radiation

Transparency

Trade-off


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Thank You

issues concerning uranium mines in jharkhand

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