nuclear-news

Uranium pollution in India

The most vulnerable naked nukes of India —more than 80% of India’s nuclear and missile infrastructure based in the insurgency-hit areas or extremists’ dominated region The Daily Mail 14 Oct 09 By Makhdoom Babar in Islamabad & Christina Palmer in New Delhi

“……………………..The Daily Mail’s investigation team learnt that the radiation was a big problem in the area, yet it was unaddressed by the government. According to The Daily Mail’s findings,on Aug. 16, 2008, a new tailings pipeline burst near Jaduguda caused a uranium mill tailings spill that reached nearby homes.The management of the Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL) agreed to rehabilitate the 26 families affected by the radioactive waste that spewed in Dungridih Jadugoda.

The UCIL also proposed a modern village in its leasehold area, besides providing the villagers with other facilities but nothing such happened later on. These investigations further reveal that During flash floods in June 2008, radioactive uranium waste dumped into a tailing pond of Uranium Corporation of India Ltd (UCIL) in Jadugoda of Jamshedpur spilled over into nearby village ponds, wells and fields, and destroyed crops as well.While UCIL authorities admitted that radioactive waste had spilled into villages, they maintained that it would not pose any health threats to villagers

Residents of nearby villages have stopped using water from their ponds and wells, fearing health problems. Villagers have also complained that the nuclear waste had destroyed a large amount of crops. “The waste that spilled from the tailing pond has destroyed our crops. If this continues, there might not be any crops in the coming years,” said Kannhu Murmu of Tilaitand village. Some experts also feel that the radioactive waste would also have a harmful impact on the soil for years. “The waste will get mixed with soil and in the long run would pose health-related problems to both human beings and animals,” said Nitish Priyadarshi, a local geologist.

The Daily Mail – Daily News from Pakistan – Newspaper from Pakistan

October 14, 2009 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | 1, environment, India | antinuclear, indigenous, nuclear, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, uranium, wastes