The National People’s Youth Front (NPYF) today expressed its opposition to any desire on the part of the central government to mine uranium in the state.
The subject of uranium was raised in Parliament yesterday where it was stated that the Centre was planning for exploratory mining in parts of Meghalaya, which has an estimated 23,268 tonnes of uranium under the surface.
“We will ensure that all units of the NPYF support this opposition to uranium mining in the state and we are saddened by the fact that this mining issue of uranium is being raised again and again, which is against the sentiments of the people of the state,” the NPYF’s Bajop Pyngrope told reporters today.
The NPYF is the young wing of the National People’s Party (NPP). Pyngrope added that Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong made the NPP’s stand clear earlier that the whole state is opposed to uranium mining. He also said that the state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should also pressure its organisation at the central level to give up hopes of mining uranium in Meghalaya as it was a BJP MP who spoke about uranium in Parliament.
Meanwhile, on the push for the inclusion of the Khasi and Garo languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, Pyngrope said that the initial demand was made in 1992 when Manipuri was included.
Stating that the Khasi Author Society pioneered the demand for inclusion, followed by many political parties, he added that this issue has been raised periodically but that the Trinamool Congress, which has recently made much noise on the subject in New Delhi, is doing it for political gain as state elections are approaching.
