Plea To Involve People In Vicinity In Public Hearing On Chem Plant

Visakhapatnam: Noted social activist and former IAS officer EAS Sarma on Monday appealed to Tanmay Kumar, Union Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MEFCC), involve the people living in 25 km vicinity of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in the public hearing being held on May 14 for the expansion of a chemical plant based in the border area.

APPCB has scheduled a public hearing for the capacity expansion project of TSGV SRAAC Limited at Gondiparla village in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. The unit is located close to AP-Telangana border.

Sarma said in line with the letter and spirit of the Environment (Protection) Act and the related rules and regulations, all those likely to be affected by the project within an area extending up to 25 km radius from the unit, extending into both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, need to be given an opportunity to express their objections, if any, whereas APPCB has evidently not informed either the Telangana Pollution Control Board nor those likely to be affected in the adjacent Telangana villages.He said "I request the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MEFCC) to direct APPCB to comply with the above requirement without fail, keeping in view the highly toxic nature of pollutants likely to be released from the unit."