Bitter Irony: Meghalaya minerals not helping Locals

Shillong, Feb 16 : The land in Meghalaya is rich - with minerals, flora and fauna in abundance - but the people of the state are still languishing in poverty. This is the irony with Meghalaya, which has large deposits of coal, limestone and even uranium, which, if judiciously exploited, could bring progress to the state and help alleviate poverty.

The fact that mining activities in Meghalaya have not really benefited the masses is perhaps one of the reasons why there has been consistent opposition to the extraction of limestone and proposal to mine uranium from various quarters and pressure groups. "The benefits have not percolated down to the grassroots," said a former legislator on condition of anonymity.

Citing example of the ongoing limestone extraction by a multinational company in Shella in East Khasi Hills for supply to a cement factory in Bangladesh, he rued the fact that raw limestone is being siphoned off without adding value to it. "It is not regenerating the rural economy, which is in a shambles. The limestone should have been taken to the clinker stage at least, if not used here itself to manufacture cement before being exported. This would have provided employment to the local people," he said. "The conveyor belt of the company was burnt down some years back perhaps because the locals were not happy as they did not get a slice of the pie."

On the other hand, the unscientific "rat-hole" coal-mining processes deployed in Jaintia Hills has not only damaged the ecology of the region, but has also failed to uplift the economic condition of the locals. It is the rich coal merchants who have benefited, while those who toil in the mines under life-threatening conditions continue to live in abject poverty.

The case with agro-horticultural produces is not much different either. "Whatever is taken out of the state - broom-sticks or fruits or other agricultural produces and minerals - should be processed here instead of being exported in raw form," said J Lyngdoh, an upcoming entrepreneur. "The income has to spread over a greater number of people and not benefit just a privileged few. Only then can we regenerate the rural economy."

"Bangladesh is importing fruit pulps from Andhra Pradesh. The same could have been done here in Meghalaya and we could be exporting local products to the neighbouring country, which is our natural market and not mainland India. Our fruits are either left to rot or exported in the raw form," he said.