Staff Reporter

"The department is not in the know of the matter in Garo Hills," Deputy Chief Minister in-charge Mining and Geology, Bindo M Lanong, said.

However, he added: "He (Dr Mukul Sangma) being the Chief Minister of the state is at liberty to take any decision on his own."

Recently, the Garo Students’ Union (GSU) met the Chief Minister urging him to put off the proposed exploratory drilling at the park.

Lanong also stated that since the GSU met the government only on April 29 last, "the order to keep the exploratory mining in abeyance may be in transit".

The Mining and Geology Minister has, however, instructed his officials in the department to seek information about the memorandum submitted by the GSU.

When asked whether the government would use the same measures for uranium mining in Garo Hills as it has done in the case of West Khasi Hills, Lanong said: "We cannot have two yardsticks. We will have to deal with it by the same yardstick."

He also admitted that the uranium mining issue is a controversial subject and has to be accorded special attention. "Mining of uranium ore is a sensitive issue. It is not like mining of coal or iron-ore, we will have to look at it from a different angle and take into consideration the pros and cons," he said.

Earlier, several NGOs from Garo Hills have opposed the Department of Atomic Energy’s (DAE) proposal to conduct its drilling exercise inside the park.

Last week the influential GSU met the Chief Minister, Dr Mukul Sangma, who decided to move the Centre against the proposed exploratory drilling inside Balpakram National Park

.