Mailaram village is at the risk of losing its existence. The reason for this is not just the hill’s natural and essential resources, but also the valuable minerals it contains — quartz and feldspar.
Published Jan 10, 2025 | 2:24 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 10, 2025 | 2:52 PM
Mining activities in Mailaram Hill. (Supplied)
Some residents of Mailaram village in the Balmoor Mandal of Nagar Kurnool district in Telangana have been facing a life-and-death issue for the past fifteen years, which has worsened over the last six years and now become a hindrance to their lives for the past two months.
On Sunday, 5 January, they came to Hyderabad to raise awareness about this problem and bring it to the attention of the public and media, as authorities, government agencies and political parties have failed to solve the issue.
They travelled 160 kilometres to the city to express their concerns.
There is a hill spread over 120 acres in Mailaram. Those familiar with rural societies know how essential hills are to the livelihoods of rural communities and how inseparable they are from daily life.
The people of surrounding villages consider the Mailaram Hill to be like a mother. The trees and greenery on the hill provide life-giving oxygen to four or five nearby villages. The cattle and goats of these villages are brought here for grazing.
The hill is home to vital resources like firewood, fruit trees, medicinal plants, and various animals and birds. The water collected over the hill and flowing through its streams irrigates nearby lakes, ponds, and groundwater reserves.
This hill is not just a physical resource, but it also holds great spiritual significance. There are temples of Lord Shiva, Lord Chennakeshava, Lord Venkateshwara, and local deities on the hill, offering solace to the local community. The people of the surrounding villages celebrate annual festivals at the Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple atop the hill.
Mailaram village, located near the hill, owes much of its existence to the resources and spiritual value of this hill. The local population exceeds 3,500, and the people of five nearby villages depend on this hill for their livelihoods.
The previous government spent lakhs of rupees to build facilities like rural nature parks and sports grounds using a part of the hill. Now, there are plans to construct the Uma Maheswara Reservoir with a budget of ₹4,500 crore near the hill. In short, the hill plays a crucial role in the lives, development, and economy of the local population.
However, the hill is now under threat from corporate exploitation, supported by the government. Mailaram village is at the risk of losing its existence.
The reason for this is not just the hill’s natural and essential resources, but also the valuable minerals it contains — quartz and feldspar.
These minerals are used in modern industrial products and home needs and have a strong demand in the international market. Just as oil is buried beneath the soil in the Arab world, and valuable minerals are hidden under the central Indian forests, Mailaram Hill is also rich in valuable minerals, threatening the livelihoods of its people.
The government has leased nearly half of the hill to a contractor for mining quartz and feldspar, with an annual extraction of 70,000 tons. This is a business that started with an investment of ₹25 crore. The lease is supposed to last 14 years, but it is rumoured to extend up to 20 years.
Despite the official lease covering only half of the hill, numerous cases of illegal mining activities beyond the leased area have been reported elsewhere. In other words, this venture is a scheme to plunder the hill’s resources and generate massive profits, with political leaders and officials receiving bribes.
The mining operations have caused significant environmental damage. Heavy vehicles, dump trucks, JCBs, and drilling machines have caused roads to deteriorate. The dust and noise pollution from the mining work are severely affecting the health of local residents. Mining operations continue day and night, disturbing the peace of the village. The sound of drilling machines is waking up small children.
People who oppose mining are being intimidated and harassed by filing false cases. To date, seven people have been charged, and one person has been sent to jail.
In the long term, the hill will be destroyed. Its flora and fauna will disappear. The water resources that the hill provides will vanish, along with the lakes and ponds around it. The planned reservoir may also be abandoned or not built at all.
After all this destruction, will Mailaram village even exist? Will its people lose their agricultural practices, and livelihoods, and turn into city beggars?
While we might dismiss this as a small issue, it is, in fact, a large-scale destruction of livelihoods with serious consequences. This destruction is part of a larger development model that has gripped all state and central governments, as well as political parties, in the country.
Efforts to mine Mailaram Hill have been ongoing for nearly 20 years. In 2009, the then Tehsildar issued a No Objection Certificate to mining. However, mining in rural and forest areas involves several legal restrictions, environmental assessments, and public hearings. With globalisation, these restrictions have been gradually reduced. Under the current government, most regulations have been lifted, and mineral resources across the country are being handed over to corporations.
The Telangana State-level Environment Impact Assessment Authority rejected the company’s request for environmental clearance in April 2018, citing the negative environmental impact of mining near residential areas.
However, just days later, the company sent a letter stating that it would take measures to avoid environmental damage and requested a review of the rejection. By the end of the month, the environmental clearance was granted, with certain conditions. These conditions, however, have been ignored by the company and contractors, and no monitoring has been done.
This entire episode reflects the political and corporate nexus, where those in power prioritize their personal gain over the welfare of the people, the environment, and the well-being of future generations. The same exploitation is happening across the country, with people fighting back in some places.
In Mailaram, the villagers have united against the mining activities, forming the “Mailaram Hill Protection Committee.” According to the committee, the contractor, supported by the police, is violently suppressing opposition and filing false cases against those who resist.
This is not just an issue for Mailaram; it’s our problem too!
