As KGF: Chapter 2 hits the theatres breaking all records, you should all know that there exists a real KGF – Kolar Gold Fields about 100 kilometers from Bangalore in Karnataka.
Operated by the Bharat Gold Mines Limited (BGML), the KGF was the world’s second deepest gold mine at a depth of 3,000 meters. For over a century, the region was actively mined till being closed on 28 February 2001 due to a fall in gold prices, high operational costs, and low revenues despite the presence of gold deposits.
One of India’s first power-generation units was built in 1889 to support mining operations in Robertsonpet, the headquarters of KGF. The mine complex also hosted some particle physics experiments between the 1960s and 1992.
And today it is in a state of ruins with no electricity, drinking water supply, or any other modern facility.
“It was once called mini England and the KGF was the first Indian city to be electrified in 1902. The British government had also built a lake to meet the water demands of the area. When the mine was operational, the area didn’t experience any power cuts or water shortages. But now, after the gold has finished the area, has lost its glitter too as there is neither proper electricity supply nor drinking water,” said 79-year-old K Esavel, a resident of Karnataka’s Kolar Gold Fields (KGF).
About 260,000 people still live in the KGF in shanties smaller than 100 square feet in over 400 colonies. Since the mines were closed the laborers were jobless. They now live in poverty without any financial and health aid from the government. The living conditions in those colonies are very poor as well as people don’t have access to proper toilets and there are open drains in the colonies for wastewater which ends up triggering a host of communicable diseases.
“The government has taken 40 precious years of my life, used me, and left me to die when their work was completed,” rued Esavel.
Likewise, Kalai Arasan, a resident of the KGF’S Mill Colony, informed that there are only five public toilets and nearly 2,500 inhabitants rely on them. She informed that all the men and more than half of the women defecate in the open.
“The local municipality didn’t pay heed to the several complaints made by the residents demanding proper toilet facilities. When the toilets weren’t cleaned for over a year, the residents started cleaning them because they feared a disease outbreak,” she mentioned.
Land and water contamination in KGF
Over the years, the mines have generated about 35 million tonnes of residue from ore processing that has been left near the BGML site.
The effluents are dumped in 13 major mounds occupying about 15 percent of the total land area of about 58.12 square kilometers, which comprise cyanide and silica. Some of these cyanide hills, rise to a height of 40 meters. There are traces of sulphate and sodium silicate in the deposits as well. Sodium cyanide was used along with lime to extract gold.
As a result, in some low-lying areas, froth is seen on the surface due to acidification of the residue materials of sulphide dust.
The dump contaminated the groundwater in the area. The streams, which flow through the residue dumps, cause floods during monsoon, and chemicals from the dump seep into the water tanks and fertile agricultural lands.
“This has made the land infertile, whereas it was once used to grow vegetables, paddy, ragi, and groundnut,” cited Environmentalist Vijay Kuman.
Health hazards
Former employees of the Kolar Gold Fields suffer from silicosis, cancer, liver problems, and other health ailments owing to the blast, gases, and smoke. Only a few employees of the mine are alive now, while a majority of them have died after developing these diseases.
The cyanide dumps are covered by a cloud of dust and reek of sulphur dioxide, causing air pollution. Residents complain that particulate matter (tiny dust particles) from the dump is a major cause of skin allergies and respiratory problems. It’s difficult to breathe during windy days owing to the dust particles in the air.
“There are no proper hospitals, and they usually have to go to Bangalore for treatment,” Esavel said.
Murali K., the town’s health inspector, conceded that no measures have been taken to stop the spread, but they are trying to contain air pollution by planting the saplings on the cyanide hill.
Educated yet jobless
Due to lack of work in their locality since the mines shut, most people end up regularly traveling to Bangalore for work. As a result, a major portion of their earnings is spent on travel. It doesn’t matter even if they are educated since there are no jobs nearby.
“After the closure of mines, no companies are operating in the area, apart from Bharat Earth Movers Limited, but some people have also started driving auto-rickshaws and set up shops,” Valaras, a daily wager from the area said.
Some former employees of the BGML allege that they get no or low pension of about Rs. 650 as pension every month. They had promised that the amount would be raised to Rs. 3,000 but that never happened. Many don’t even fall in the category and so have to struggle to meet their ends today.
“We suddenly became untouchables after the closure of mills and the government is ignoring us like we don’t exist,” Esavel added.
The COVID-19 pandemic further decreased opportunities rendering many people penniless.
Government’s apathy
India’s National Mineral Policy notes that once the reserves in mine are completely exhausted there is a need for scientific mine closure which will not only restore the ecology and regenerate biodiversity but also take into account the socio-economic aspects of such closure.
“Where mining activities have been spread over a few decades, mining communities get established and closure of the mine means not only loss of jobs for them but also disruption of community life. Mine closure should be done in an orderly and systematic manner. Government has a role in ensuring that post-production mine decommissioning and land reclamation are an integral part of the mine development process; that financial provisions for the costs incurred in mine closure are accorded a high level of priority by the industry; and that consistent approaches are adopted for efficient and effective mine reclamation and rehabilitation,” the policy notes.
Similar guidelines have been Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), an organization under the Department of Mines.
This never happened in KGF. The Centre did ask the state government to revive the area but the state government contended that the area brings no revenue to the city municipal council and has liabilities of over Rs. 17,000 crore (Rs. 170 billion).
Karthikeyan Kandasamy, professor, Sigma College of Architecture in Kanyakumari, in his research ‘Socio-economic Impact of Unsystematic Mine Closure: A case of Kolar Gold Fields’ states that if due process was followed in the KGF while shutting the mine, it could have brought new land use, employment, character, and vibrancy to the area. He blames unplanned closure for the degradation of land, the environment, and people’s livelihood in the KGF.
Moreover, the KGF has always been neglected when it comes to the fund allocation for development, and said people of the KGF are living in poor conditions because of the government’s apathy.
“In KGF, we have the manpower, good infrastructure, and acres of land, which can be used for industrial purposes and the borders of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are close by. The state government should have capitalized on these things to create employment opportunities for the people in KGF,” suggested Sashidhar, current legislator.
Some good news
Having been concerned about the health of the people in KGF, Rotary Club Bangalore Orchards has adopted a cyanide dump spread over 40 hectares.
Deputy Conservator of Forests Srinivasa Rao, Karnataka came out with the innovation of ‘interlocked trenches’ on the soil which led the rainwater to percolate down, allowing the surface to retain moisture, thus cooling the air system. His path-breaking idea led to the plantation on the slurry dump and soon, the fine cyanide dust was arrested by the green cover, instead of being blown away causing health problems to the KGF residents.
At the same time, the Karnataka government announced its plans to develop an industrial park in the area of over 3,200 acres of the 12,109 acres owned by the BGML.
-With selective inputs from Mongabay