Hyderabad: City-based Atomic Minerals Directorate for Research and Exploration (AMD) has sought the Union ministry of forest and environment for forest clearance for uranium exploration in Kappatralla reserve forest to an extent of 468 hectares.
AMD has sunk 20 boreholes so far and covered only 30% of the area and they have now decided to dig further to cover the remaining area in Kappatralla in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh.
Documents filed by AMD with the ministry of forest revealed, “Preliminary geological assessment and radioactive anomalies located in and around Kappatralla, hold positivity for having a high-grade uranium mineralisation. The forest land is one of the prime targets for exploration-related uranium mineralisation in India.” Incidentally, Kappatralla was once a faction-ridden hotbed. The Directorate said there were similarities in geological parameters to already established uranium mineralisation in Chitrial and Peddagattu of Nalgonda district in Telangana.
“The department proposes to carry out survey and subsurface exploration by drilling in Kappatralla reserve forest,” the directorate said in its application, hoping to carry out uranium mining in 468 hectares in the forest reserve.
In February 2018, director of mines and geology incharge B Sreedhar, in his letter to the department of atomic energy said, “GSI (Geological Survey of India) and AMD are empowered to take investigations without any permission. No permission is required from the state government.”
AMD had sunk 20 boreholes so far and it covered only 30% of the area and they have now decided to dig further to cover the remaining area. Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL) is currently mining uranium in Pulivendula in Kadapa district. Efforts of AMD scientists have resulted in locating significant and promising uranium deposits in the northern parts of the Cuddapah basin.
Review of all areas of ongoing investigation and assessment indicates northern part of Cuddapah basin is most promising and potential area in country for high-grade, large tonnage uranium deposits.
Courtesy TOI
