Make all approvals given to Yellur plant public: samiti

Make all approvals given to Yellur plant public: samiti

Mangalore Today News Network

Udupi May 12: President of the executive committee of the Nagarjuna Virodhi Horata Samiti Vijaykumar Hegde on Tuesday urged the State Government to make public all approvals given for setting up the 1,015-MW coal-based thermal plant at Yellur in Udupi district.

Addressing presspersons here, Mr. Hegde said that nearly 60 per cent of the work had been completed at the project site. But there was still no information about the installation of the Flue Gas Desulphurisation Plant, height of the chimney and the disposal of ash.

The company (Udupi Power Corporation Ltd.,) did not appear to have fulfilled the conditions required for the implementation of clean coal technology. Since Udupi district was environmentally sensitive, all the equipment necessary to reduce the pollution should be installed in the thermal plant.

If the Government was bent on having the thermal power plant at Yellur, it should go for a gas-based plant instead of a coal-based one.

The police personnel in the area should stop harassing people who were opposed to the thermal plant. The approvals given to the company should be made public within a week and it should be disclosed how any damage caused to the environment and the people’s health would be addressed. Should they fail to give satisfactory replies, the samiti would resort to legal course to deal with the issue, Mr. Hegde said.

Leaders of the samiti Amrit Shenoy and Tyamapanna Shetty, and president of the district unit of Janata Dal (Secular) Deviprasad Shetty were present.
Thehindu