UCIL indeed invaded AP in 2007 as Tummalapalle uranium project with the strong backing of former CM YS Rajasekhara Reddy. The Tummalapalle uranium ore situated in his own constituency Pulivendula of kadapa district became strategic initiative for the UCIL. Quite naturally the proposal of the project initially met with people‟s protest. They were guided by environmentalists, human rights activists and mass organizations. It was the ever heard hue in more than three decades of YS Reddy family monopoly. But soon subjugating these people was a facile task in the typical factionist village politics.
UCIL before entering Pulivendula met with strong resistance almost every where it moved into. Infact the Nalgonda people‟s victory over UCIL was a moral fighting force for the environmentalists and rights activists who motivated the people of Pulivendula. Ironically the man who strongly opposed uranium mining in Nalgonda stating his opinion „as a doctor rather as opposition party leader‟ welcomed UCIL into his own constituency in Chief Minister‟s honor.
The environmental public hearing staged on 10th September 2006 in Tummalapalle village was a mockery of modern democracy- human rights activists commented. Under the eye of local MP, YS Vivekananda Reddy, the brother of YS Rajesekhar Reddy, the public hearing denied to hear pubic opinion. Even the late human rights activist Balagopal and nuclear scientist Mr. Gadeker themselves had bitter experience. The later had a narrow escape from the stone pelted by faction goons. People were strategically and more conveniently split by the rulers wooing with employment guarantee. The mining site has villages with different topographies. Villagers with good irrigated land especially people from bhoomaiah gari palle strongly refused the compensation in exchange of their land. But people holding nothing but barren soils with hardly any produce were easily lured by UCIL and local politicians. Many of them sold off their land even to the third parties and all of them turned against the project opponents no doubt became the strategy played by the rulers. Both the groups pelted stones on each other shouting pro and anti uranium slogans. Police selectively laticharged and imposed cases against project
opponents and threatened them with grave consequences. And the consequence is Uranium mining project spreading over 971.63ha (9.72sq.Km) in which the ore is to be extracted through underground mining and processed by uranium hydro-metallurgical process. The terminator is on. The most destructive form of matter, the form of energy for which human lives are devalued most sprouts up.
Four years passed and people did not get any jobs promised by UCIL and local politicians. But the adverse effects of first phase of mining started thrashing them. After repeated complaints concerning severe declining of ground water levels which led to drying up of nearly 200 bore wells in the recent months and also pollution of ground waters even with corrosion effects, none of the officials attempted to examine them. On the other hand the UCIL‟s proposal of expansion of uranium mining project with an aim to increase production of uranium ore from 3000 to 4500 tpd has come under fire.
Meanwhile the demise of CM YS Rajasekhara Reddy changed the political scenario as his son YS Jagan Mohan Reddy turned against the centre. Jagan seeking political legacy of his father now speaks in the interest of people. He warns that his people will obstruct the public hearing until their demands are met with. But the issue of jobs unfortunately brought to the forefront bypassing the serious issues of environment and health hazards. However the public hearing postponed thrice marks the puzzled situation of UCIL. At this stage it has to answer the people whom they kept away from the boundary walls. Or it might not necessarily be as the people may be forced out of the villages loosing their livelihoods by the rapid exhaustion of ground water resource.
Geology professor G. Krishna Rao commented on the adverse effects reported by the people after visiting the villages. His report stressed on the situation of ground water in this area clearly tells that once the mine starts production the fate of groundwater appears terrible. His report in the month of june throws light on the concerns of the villagers.
“Mining depth extends down to 75 to 145m below ground level. Water table of groundwater is reported at a depth of 13 to 14m bgl. Groundwater is exploited in the area through large diameter open wells and bore wells of 19 to 58m depth. Mine water discharge is given as 1845m3/day.
Some adverse effects reported by the people due to ongoing mining in the project area and the scientific explanation are as follows:
1. Groundwater levels are declining in the area and 130 bore wells dried up. Since mining depth exceeds the bore well depths, this situation is possible. Groundwater recharge over project area comes to about 4.9* 105 m 3 /yr ( on the basis of 8.4% infiltration factor of rainfall), while mine discharge is about 6.7*10 5 m 3 /yr. it means discharge exceeds the local recharge leading to overexploitation. This situation extends even to the neighboring areas which are hydraulically connected . Mine discharge of groundwater will continue for the next 30 years till the end of the mining operations. The aquifers will therefore be dewatered in course of time depriving the people of drinking and irrigation waters. The area of impact can be assessed through modeling studies. The project area and its neighboring area have already reached above semi-critical stage of groundwater development in the district.
2. Groundwater pollution has been reported in the area even with corrosion effects.
Pollution of surface and groundwaters in the mining areas from the mine face, ore dumps, and solid wastes from processing plants is an established fact. The fact that most of the chemical constituents like Ca, Mg, Fe etc reported to have reduced in tail ends compared to the ore bearing rocks testifies that they are carried by the waters. Insoluble heavy elements like Ni, Mn are concentrated in the tail ends.
The project area and the neighbouring areas will be effected with pollution of groundwater. This will be very severe in the fracture porosity zones which can transmit pollutants to longer distances. The area will also become barren with no groundwater. People may be forced to evacuate the area in search of water and food.
3. Proper safety measures are not adopted in the project site with respect to ore dumps and tail end pits which are left bare open grounds. They should be placed in engineered dumps and engineered dams respectively which are designed with water tight bottoms to avoid percolation of leachates and pollution of groundwaters. Secondly, the tail ends should be kept covered by water to reduce surface radioactivity and radon emission. Finally, they should be covered with about two meters of clay and top soil instead of only surface soil to reduce radiation.
4. The ore is crushed to powder state passing through 100 mesh. Alpha activity is potential hazard in powder state.”
Prof Krishna Rao‟s recent field visit (09.09.2011) in all the five villages under Uranium mining project Thummalapalle, Rachakuntapalle, Mabbuchintala palle, Bhoomaiah gari palle and Kottalu evaluated the hydrogeological situation in the area in view of the ongoing uranium mining operations.
“The mining area with ridge and valley topography presents a picturesque view like a hill station. The uranium mineralisation lies in a shear zone in Cuddapah formations consisting of dolomitic limestone, purple shale and quartzite. These rocks became compact and also intensely fractured. Joint sets also developed in some locations . This area ,therefore, forms a potential zone for groundwater. Presence of numerous irrigation bore wells supporting banana plantations in this area testifies it.
It is learnt that the local people got a tip- off from the high discharges of bore wells during exploration and the pilot mining operations of the uranium project. Groundwater development, therefore, is hardly 5 years old. Depth of bore wells was limited to 150 to 300 ft. depending on the topography. Their yields are reported in the range of delivery through 2.5 to 3” dia. Pipes which is quite high compared to similar formations in the non-tectonic areas in Cuddapah Basin. It is reported that most of these wells have been dried up since two years i.e. since mining started. The people resorted to go for deeper wells with 350 to 450 ft. In some places and 600 to 800 ft. In other places. Some of these deep wells have failed obviously with variation of the rock type and fracturing at depth.
Static water levels are reported to be shallow in the initial stage and the submersible pumps were kept at 100 ft. The present setting of the pumps are at a depth range of 300 to 400 ft. in the new bore wells. At Bhumayagaripalle, the present (pseudo) static water level in two drinking water
wells situated 50 ft apart is found to be 132 ft bgl. But the bore was dewatered with in 5 minutes when the pump was switched on. The bore well is 350 ft. deep and the pump was kept at 300 ft. It infers that the earlier aquifer zone was dewatered. The present aquifer zone must be therefore below 350ft in this village which used to have shallow aquifer zones around 50 ft. bgl earlier. At this rate of decline in water levels and the mine depth reaching its targeted depth around 2000 ft., the entire area will be dewatered in the course of time. Quality of ground waters is likely to vary with the geological formation and the influence of mineralised zone. However, this aspect loses its significance as the resource will be exhausted shortly.”
Nuclear power as we see is not just an energy form, it is a specific form of capital accumulation and social control. It empowers imperialist countries to threaten the world and exploit or rob the resources. The fate of Hiroshima and Nagasaki stated the potency of imperialism. Since then nuclear power shared a jumbo in national budgets becoming crucial defense and military requirement. Imperialism made uranium exploration and imports inevitable. All this happens amidst nuclear non proliferation treaties. Imperialism decides whom the nuclear technology has to be shared with, whom to wage war with on the act of manufacturing nuclear arms. All the play is enacted according to imperialist market strategy. On the other hand nuclear power generation is a matter of heavy budget. More chances to make handsome money at any level fascinates politicians.
Little gets
debated in the public regarding the nuclear deals and policies even though it directly affects health and
environment. Any opposition to nuclear power faces ardent jingoism and
development paradigm. Social movements involving the masses built against it
should deal it more politically and ideologically.
November 2011
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