Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said a lasting solution would be found for the Tirupur knitwear industry, in trouble due to a court-ordered closure of all dyeing units for polluting the water sources in the region.
The industry has said the only permanent solution to solve the dye effluent problem is discharge of treated matter into the sea, a project needing Rs 1,000 crore.
Addressing a public meeting at Coimbatore on Saturday, organised by the DMK, the Congress and the other constituents of the ruling Democratic Progressive Alliance ahead of the state assembly election, the Prime Minister said the government was seized of the problem.
Tirupur exporters, in a representation to the PM, said the closure of dyeing units had resulted in the loss of 100,000 jobs. If it continued, another 500,000 people with jobs in knitwear units and allied sectors, including spinning mills, would also get affected, apart from losing export business of Rs 12,000 crore yearly.
“Considering the above situation, we want the central government to file an affidavit in the Supreme Court as an interim relief, with a prayer to grant extension of time by six months for achieving 100 per cent zero liquid discharge and, consequently, permit the reopening of bleaching and dyeing units,” said the representation.
The high court at Chennai had directed all dying units operating in Tirupur to close with immediate effect in January. It was in response to a petition filed by non-government bodies and farmers against units polluting the Noyyal river in Tirupur. The court also dismissed a petition for nine months delay in any closure, to achieve zero liquid discharge.
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A Sakthivel, president, Tirupur Exporters’ Association, said the Union government allocated Rs 200 crore in last year’s budget for common effluent treatment plants (CETPs)to be established in Tirupur. In line with this, the Tamil Nadu government had also granted Rs 120 crore for CETPs set up in Tirupur.
“CETPs in Tirupur had actually invested Rs 1,200 crore but, unfortunately, due to technical failure in the machinery, they could not achieve zero liquid discharge,” he said.
The only permanent solution was discharge of treated dye effluent into the sea, following marine disposal norms given by the state pollution control board, he said. If done,the entire textile belt of Tirupur, Perundurai, Erode, Pallipalayam and Karur would benefit. The estimated cost would be 1,000 crore, said Sakthivel. He said the central government needed to allocate 60 per cent of the project cost.