Introduction: S Vaikundarajan brings to everyone’s notice that the minerals that they extract and export are essentials in producing everyday household objects. He rubbishes the rumours about scamming the country for minerals that he was not even aware of until smeared with claims of an alleged scam. Which in addition to the matter, he is sure is an effort in defaming his enviably successful organisation, VV Minerals India
VV Mineral is a two-decade-old company and has been mining beach sand on the Kanyakumari, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu coasts. We don’t have the technology to separate thorium from monazite, a rare earth ore found in the area.
Even the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has put us in the clear on that matter. VV Mineral India extracts and exports garnet and ilmenite to 20 countries, including Australia and the US.
Nuclear scientists in India have been working on an indigenous technology to utilise thorium, widely available on the southern sea coast, in nuclear power plants. And for the very same reason the Jawaharlal Nehru government has banned all private mining companies from extracting or dealing in a whole list of rare earths.
“VV Mineral does not process monazite if the government claims that it is automatically generated during the mineral separation process in the form of tailings then it is an aspect of mining that they should have thought of much earlier”, says Vaikundarajan.
Indian Rare Earth Ltd (IREL) on the other hand uses the sand from the same area and produces thorium in Manavalakurichi.
“Without questioning IREL’s disposal methods, VV Mineral stopped receiving permits for mining but we have challenged the matter in the High Court,” , says Vaikundarajan.
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