No Lithium in Meghalaya
We published a report yesterday informing there is Lithium in Meghalaya. However here is the latest update.
Well, there’s been quite a to-do in recent weeks, hasn’t there? When news broke that lithium — the shiny new darling of the electric age — had supposedly been unearthed in Meghalaya, the headlines went off like a string of Diwali crackers. But, as it turns out, someone may have been counting their chickens before they’d even seen an egg.
In a recent clarification that’s put the record straight, the Director General of the Geological Survey of India (GSI), Asit Saha, has firmly scotched the rumour: “As far as this controversy regarding lithium is concerned, it is not true. Lithium is the buzz word, but we do not have lithium in Meghalaya,” he said, cutting through the noise like a hot knife through butter.
That’s not to say Meghalaya is entirely without mineral wealth — far from it. The GSI has been hard at work, nose to the grindstone, identifying mineral-rich blocks across the state. In fact, no fewer than 20 such blocks have already been handed over to the state government for auctioning, with the hope that they’ll fetch a fair few pennies once the hammer falls.
Mr Saha elaborated on the broader mineral picture, stating that GSI’s exploration efforts span everything from coal and bauxite to limestone. Using a mix of remote sensing and good old-fashioned boots-on-the-ground surveys, the team has been gathering data with characteristic thoroughness.
However, when it comes to coal, the conversation took a rather more serious turn. The age-old practice of rat-hole mining — a method as dangerous as it is outdated — continues to be a thorn in Meghalaya’s side. “Geologists are always in the field,” said Saha. “But due to land ownership issues and lack of complete assessment and resource calculation, rat-hole mining is still practised.”
It’s a problem not unique to Meghalaya but common across the Northeast. Simply put, coal in this region isn’t mined the way it is in other parts of the country — more’s the pity. The resources are there, but the infrastructure and investment aren’t quite up to scratch.
As for bauxite, the jury’s still out. Exploration is ongoing, and while there’s promise, it’s not quite time to break out the pickaxes just yet. “We cannot say you can mine bauxite here now,” Saha clarified. Patience, as they say, is a virtue.
Where Meghalaya really seems to be sitting on a potential goldmine — or rather, a limestone mine — is in its rich limestone deposits. Twenty blocks of the stuff have been earmarked and handed over for government auctioning. And there’s more: in the Soong Valley, the GSI has identified rare earth elements — the kind of stuff that makes modern gadgets tick and tech giants sit up and take notice.
So while the lithium story may have turned out to be a storm in a teacup, Meghalaya is still very much in the mineral game. It may not be time to strike it rich just yet, but the groundwork is being laid. And who knows? With a bit of planning, investment, and a dash of political will, the state could yet turn its mineral potential into a proper earner.
In short, it’s not all doom and gloom — but for now, we’ll have to leave the lithium dreams on ice.
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