Citizens’ Research Collective on SEZ

Mangalore, November 27, 2007: “This is not a purely profit driven venture,” said I.S.N. Prasad, chief operating officer and managing director of Mangalore Special Economic Zone Limited while defending the Rs. 35,000-crore project in an interaction with presspersons here on Monday.

A section of the media, unconvinced by their justification, slammed the officials for not functioning in a democratic manner while acquiring land for the project. Mr. Prasad reacted by saying: “We do not like to acquire land forcibly.”

The interaction comes just two days ahead of the crucial November 28 public consultation on the environmental impact of the MSEZ project which will be adjudicated by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board. At the meeting, the MSEZ officials, along with the Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry, attempted to dispel what they described as “misconceptions and doubts” about the project.

Reiterating that the MSEZ was mooted primarily to give a boost to industry and commerce, Mr. Prasad said, “MSEZ was not proposed by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited, Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Limited or the State Government. It was proposed by the local chambers of commerce and entrepreneurs” .

The interaction soon turned into a heated debate with presspersons expressing concerns over the environmental impact of the project and the issue of human displacement. Pointing out that industrial enterprises such as these had lost goodwill of the people, journalists cited the discouraging precedence set by some petrochemical and chemical companies in the region. Reacting to the doubts, Mr. Prasad said: “There were mistakes during the MRPL project. We do not want to repeat the mistakes committed by the MRPL.”

At present, the MRPL has a 26 per cent stake in the MSEZ project.

Clarification
“Attempts are being made to avoid acquisition of prime agricultural land for the project,” he said and claimed that only 30 per cent of the acquired or notified land was used for agriculture. “We have not been able to find a large expanse of land without a trace of agricultural activity on it,” he added.

Mr. Prasad said that the rehabilitation and resettlement package being offered to displaced families of MSEZ was the most comprehensive in Karnataka. “Number of people have approached us to take a survey of their land for acquisition,” he claimed.

The rehabilitation colony for the displaced families is planned at Kulai. Reacting to revelations that the groundwater in certain parts of Kulai was polluted by effluents released by a chemical plant, Mr Prasad said, “The area has been selected by the people themselves” .

Environmental concern
Mr. Prasad stressed that the November 28 public hearing was only to obtain permission from the Pollution Control Board for the creation of infrastructure on the acquired land.

Every industrial unit would have to attain specific clearance from the PCB before setting up their operations, he added.

There were reservations about the copious amounts of water that the project would consume.

For this, Mr. Prasad said that one-third of the water requirement or 18 million gallons, would be coming from the treated sewage. The water requirement of the entire 3,900-acre project campus is estimated to be 45 million gallons a day.

Source: The Hindu