Jaduguda uranium mine

The Jaduguda Mine (also spelt as Jadugoda or Jadugora) is a uranium mine in Jaduguda village in the Purbi Singhbhum district of the Indian state of Jharkhand. It commenced operation in 1967 and was the first uranium mine in India.[1] The deposits at this mine were discovered in 1951. As of March 2012, India only possesses two functional uranium mines, including this Jaduguda Mine.[2] A new mine, Tummalapalle uranium mine is discovered and mining is going to start from it.

Jaduguda Uranium Mine
Location
Jaduguda Uranium Mine
Location in India
LocationJaduguda, Purbi Singhbhum district
StateJharkhand
CountryIndia
Coordinates22°39′17″N 86°21′51″E
Production
ProductsUranium
History
Opened1967
Owner
CompanyUranium Corporation of India
Websitewww.ucil.gov.in

Mining activities were suspended in 2014 following an inquiry into the lease renewal of the mine. Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL) expects mining activity to resume at Jaduguda in 2017.[3][4] The Jaduguda mine produces up to 25% of the raw materials needed to fuel India's nuclear reactors.[5]

Geography

The Jaduguda uranium mine is an underground mining mine located in the Purbi Singhbhum district of Jharkhand.[6] The mine is located at least 640 meters below the earth's surface and is accessible by a 5-meter diameter vertical shaft.[7]

Uranium purification plant

A uranium purification plant is usually located closely to the mine as uranium ore is converted here to yellow cake. According to Department of Atomic Energy, the ore extracted from this mine is of 0,065 grade, which means that the plant needs to process 1000 kg of ore to extract 65 grams of usable uranium.[8] The plant processes 2,190 tonnes uranium ore per day.[9]

After purification of the ore, yellow cake is shipped by heavy-duty vehicles to the Nuclear Fuel Complex in Hyderabad, Telangana, which is over 1,200 kilometres (750 mi) away from plant.[10]

Smuggling of uranium

On February 18, 2008 police of Supaul district in the eastern Indian state of Bihar seized 4 kg of low-quality uranium and arrested one Indian and five Nepali smugglers. According to media reports the uranium was smuggled out of the Jaduguda mines and the smugglers were trying to sell it to Nepal. The market value of the seized uranium was estimated at Rs. 5 crore on the international market.[11][12]

Pollution

When uranium ore is extracted from the ground, 99.28% of the mined ore is treated as waste as the uranium isotopes used in nuclear power plants mainly is uranium-235 leaving behind the major portion of the ore which consists of uranium-236 and uranium-238 as well as some other components. This waste (also referred to as tailings) is then neutralised with lime and carried through pipelines to a tailing pond. This transport is made possible through the provision of clean water (in the pipelines) out of decantation wells which is then taken through a closed channel to an effluent treatment plant for the removal of radium and manganese. The solid tailings are then retained in the ponds (tailing ponds).

There were reports coming from the locals around the tailing ponds:

In a report in CSE-Down to Earth Feature Service, entitled "A deformed existence" and dated 4 June 1999, Manish Tiwari quoted Biruli as saying, "Many women in the area complain of disrupted menstrual cycles. This area also has a high rate of either miscarriages or still-born babies. Biruli claims that nearly 30,000 people living in 15 villages in the five-km radius of the tailings ponds are exposed to radiation. 'Earlier, children were still-born. Now, they die within few days of their birth,' he says. He also claims that nearly one-third of the women living in these areas are suffering from loss of fertility. Even animals such as cows and buffaloes are suffering from rare diseases.[13]

BARC committee came to Jaduguda in November 1998 at the request of the State Government, due to these reports.

The committee concluded: "The consensus of all the doctors was that the cases examined had congenital anomalies, diseases due to genetic abnormalities like thalassaemia major and retinitis pigmentosa, moderate to gross splenomegaly due to chronic malaria l infection (as this is hyperendemic area), malnutrition, post encephalitis, post head injury sequelae and certain habits (alcohol) and have no relation to radiation." Its report adds: "The team was convinced and unanimously agreed that the diseases' pattern cannot be ascribed to radiation exposure in any of these cases."[13]

Controversies

The mine itself is still prone to some controversies as the introduction of the mine resulted in the loss of land for many villagers surrounding its location, as well as some issues regarding protective gear :

"A population of around 35,000 people living within a 5-kilometer radius of the mines are adversely affected by radiation from the tailing ponds. Many villagers lost land and jobs when they were displaced by the mining operations, and many now work in the uranium mines as daily wage labourers. They often do not get proper protective gear to handle radioactive materials and work with bare hands, exposing themselves to heavy doses of radiation. UCIL, the company responsible for the health of its workers, on the other hand, always refutes any allegations of violations of labour laws and human rights. The company is outright defensive about its protective measures and refuses to acknowledge the problems faced by the labourers."[14]

An exposé of India’s nuclear program, Tailing Pond, produced and directed by debutant Saurav Vishnu, investigates the horrifying effects of uranium extraction on the health of the indigenous population of Jadugoda, in eastern India. These are particularly severe for young children, many of whom are falling ill and dying due to radioactive waste pollution. Tailing Pond, is narrated by Cynthia Nixon, who is back in the news of late because of the “Sex and the City” revival “And Just Like That.”[15]

References
  1. Uranium Corporation of India Archived 26 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Daunting road ahead for nuclear power M. SOMASEKHAR The Hindu Business Line 2 November 2011
  3. "UCIL to resume mining at Jaduguda". article.wn.com. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  4. "Leaking Jaduguda mine poses radioactive risk: US report - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  5. "How the closing of uranium mine in Jaduguda will impact nuclear power output | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". dna. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  6. "Uranium plant to come up in Kadapa". The Hindu Business Line.
  7. "Jaduguda Uranium Mine | Facilities | NTI". www.nti.org. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  8. The $14m haze over India’s mega uranium discovery Arpit Parashar - Tehelka.com
  9. Mill to process natural uranium ore commissioned T.S. Subramanian, The Hindu, 26 June 2007
  10. Uranium ore ferried through Naxal belt sans security PRANBIHANGA BORPUZARI - Financial express
  11. India police seize 8 lbs of uranium from smugglers Reuters 19 February 2008.
  12. Delhi's non-compliance The News, 4 October 2008
  13. "Villages and woes". Frontline. India. 10 September 1999. Archived from the original on 16 June 2008.
  14. "Return of the Nuclear Shadow : Uranium Mining and the Tribal Community's Struggle for Survival in Jaduguda, India". Ritimo (in French). Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  15. "Indian Films Are Actively Contesting the Oscars Short Film Category". Variety. Retrieved 12 January 2021./
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