The Environment Coordination Committee (ECC) of Elaka Sutnga held a meeting today in Moopala to discuss what it described as the government’s failure to protect the people from pollution emitted by factories in the area.
The attendees decided, therefore, to hold another public rally, a press release from the ECC said, because “the people are tired of the government giving false promises to the people to take legal action against coke plants”.
Instead of protecting the public, government representatives are pushing for the legalisation of such factories that are located close to human habitation, the ECC added, despite Supreme Court rulings.
It also questioned the disparity in action by different arms of the government; the ECC pointed out that while the Deputy Commissioner closed one coke plant for violating guidelines and operating without proper documents, the state pollution control board still issued clearances. The committee also criticised the coke factories for operating under what it claimed is Benami for the benefit of outsiders from “Assam, Haryana and Rajasthan”.
It may be mentioned that the East Jaiñtia Hills Deputy Commissioner recently had lodged a non-compliance FIR against illegal coke plants in the district who have not complied with the closure order.
The order was issued in July directing all coke factories operating in the district without the consent to operate (CTO) under the Air & Water Act including those factories that received single-window clearances to shut down.
