Kerala Assembly gets report, which calls for separate body to recommend compensation.
The Coca-Cola plant at Plachimada in Palakkad district of Kerala caused serious damage to the environment of the village, leading to a loss of Rs 216 crore, according to a report submitted in the Kerala Assembly today.
An official committee, headed by K Jayakumar, additional chief secretary of the state, studied the various environmental effects of the production facility of Coca-Cola in the village, especially with regard to over-exploitation of ground water. The committee also recommended the constitution of a separate tribunal to provide adequate compensation to the affected citizens of the village.
The committee observed that the acts of the company had caused severe damage to the ecology of the village, affecting a large section of people. Over-exploitation of water resources led to severe water shortage in the Plachimada area and loss to agriculture and rural employment was serious. The report said the committee is not recommending legal action against the company because it was not entrusted do so.
Submitting the report to the assembly, N K Premachandran, minister for water resources, said the government would initiate appropriate action after analysing the various aspects of the report.
Coke terms it ‘unfortunate’
A press release issued by Coca-Cola said the committee should first determine through the process of law whether any damage was caused in the first place.
“We have read media reports that a committee appointed by the Kerala government has submitted a report to the water resources department of the government. It is our view that any government committee or panel reviewing claims should first determine through a process of law whether any damage was caused to the residents of Palakkad and, second, if such damage was caused, who was responsible. It is unfortunate that the committee in Kerala was appointed on the unproven assumption that damage was caused, and that it was caused by Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages. In these circumstances, there is little for us to comment upon, given the deliberations of a committee appointed with such a mandate. We will comment further at a more appropriate time," stated a release from Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd.
"Numerous investigations sponsored by the Government of Kerala and others have examined issues concerning the operations of the Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages plant in Palakkad. Based on scientific evaluation, our Palakkad plant operations have not been shown to be the cause of local watershed issues," the release added.
Not the first instance
Coca-Cola India was charged with ground water depletion in the past too. In 2004, for instance, following an investigation by the Central Ground Water Board in Kaladera, Rajasthan, the multinational was held responsible for depleting the ground water table in the region. The company's plant was found to be extracting huge amounts of ground water, causing ecological imbalances in the region.
Incidentally, it's arch rival PepsiCo has also not been spared. It was on March 17 this year that, taking serious note of alleged exploitation of groundwater by multinational cola giant Pepsi, a committee of the Kerala Assembly had recommended imposition of curbs on extraction of water by the company's plant at Pudussery in Palakkad district.
The report, tabled in the Assembly, however, did not ask for closure of the plant, which provides direct and indirect employment to 3,500 people. The Pepsi plant is situated over 53 acres and uses nearly 48.5 per cent of the ground water, according to the report.
