Staff Reporter
SHILLONG:
The president of the Khasi Students’ Union Lambokstarwell Marngar has reiterated the union’s opposition to uranium mining.
Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony of newly elected members of KSU Laban circle, he said that the union has come to know that the project to mine uranium in the state is still on.
“The KSU says ‘no’ and it means ‘no’ till the very end. We will oppose till the end, we will fight as long as we have breath. That is our motto,” he said.
He scoffed at talks of development arising from uranium mining and said, “I want to say who will develop and who will suffer.”
He went on to say that development cannot compromise people’s health and added that the community does not need any expert to mislead the people.
Marngar said that he was often asked on what would the KSU do if the union government bulldoze to mine uranium, he said, “We do not have weapons to fight against the Indian Union but we will review and relook into the documents on how we became part and parcel of the Indian Union.”
Speaking indirectly towards politicians and others, he said, “Are there any laws for traitors? There are slogans of change especially after the end of every five years. But even after the end of five years, we are still the same.”
He questioned the employment opportunities for the youth of the state while expressing concern for the alarming rise of substance abuse in the state.
As on February, 2021, a total of 3,50,438 tonne (t) in situ U3O8 (2,97,170t U) has been established in forty four (44) uranium deposits in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra.
In Meghalaya, uranium deposits are mostly found in South West Khasi Hills district.