Meghalaya government has asked the North Eastern Hills University (NEHU) and the IIT-Guwahati to study leaks from a tank allegedly containing uranium waste at Nongbah-Jynrin in South West Khasi Hills, chief minister Conrad Sangma said.
Chief minister Sangma on Thursday said that the NEHU has responded to the Government’s request to conduct the study, but IIT-Guwahati has not responded so far.
Sangma expressed hope that the IIT-Guwahati would also respond positively.
The NEHU has been given a few weeks to study the alleged leakage and submit its report.
The chief minister said the Government would look into these reports and if any conflict arises in these two reports, the Government would seek the opinion of a third party.
“If we see some kind of conflict in the reports, then we can take a decision. We will ensure that all possible steps are taken for the safety of our people,” he said.
Sangma said that both the institutes are independent bodies, adding that they have been chosen because it would be difficult for other organisations to move in during the pandemic.
Earlier in October, the Meghalaya government had constituted an expert agency to probe the alleged leak from a concrete uranium effluent tank.
After Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh, Meghalaya has the third-highest deposits of uranium in the country, estimated at 9.22 million tonnes.