Hyderabad: The Telangana State Legislative Assembly on Monday unanimously passed a resolution imposing a ban on uranium extraction in the State. The resolution was passed after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao responded to a request from Congress floor leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Sunday.
Earlier, introducing the resolution, IT & Industries Minister K Tarakarama Rao said the rich biodiversity of Nallamala forest will face severe threat if mining for uranium was allowed in the area. The hills and valleys of Nallamala are also the catchment area for River Krishna, he said. “The forests are also home to Chenchu tribals as well as tigers, leopards, bears, spotted deer, Nilgai, and many other creatures. They are also a rich repository of medicinal plants,” he stated.
Therefore, KTR said, they have decided to ban uranium mining following widespread opposition from the people in the State. Stating that all people in the State were stoutly opposing uranium extraction in the State, KTR demanded that the Union government withdraw its decision to go ahead with the mining process in the Nallamalla forest. He also said the State Government would not allow uranium mining in any of the areas in the new State.
KT Ramarao said the Nallamalla forest was not a mere forest in the State, but it was the identity of the State. He said the people of the State were ready to take on the Central government if it forced them to carry out the mining. He also made it clear that the State government would not allow the mining process even if the Center came up with the plank of national interest. He pointed out that radiation from mining will impact agriculture, air and drinking water, turning human life into a misery.
The experiences of uranium mining even in advanced countries also demonstrated its ill-effects. “In this context, the entire people of Telangana State are strongly opposed to the proposals for uranium mining in Nallamala. The State Legislature is in agreement with the views of people and urges the Centre to withdraw all its proposals in this regard,” he added.
NSS