UDUPI : Vijay Kumar Hegde, Executive Committee President of the Anti-Nagarjuna Action Committee has informed that it has been decided to organize a Delhi Chalo Movement against the controversial Nagarjuna thermal power project (Now UPCL), with the participation of over 100 representatives.
Speaking to press persons here on Friday, he said the date of the campaign would be decided after talks with the Pejawar seer. Stating that over 160 organizations have backed the movement, he said the President, Prime Minister and other ministers would be apprised of the pros and cons of the project.
He recalled that the company representative who had come bare handed to a fact finding meeting on the project, had declared that the company had 64 requisite permits from the government and had provided the name and the date of issue of 14 permits in an A4 sheet paper, of which 11 are bogus permits. The Committee has filed a writ in the court in this regard which is still pending, he added.
He said the company which had received site clearance from the KIADB at Nandikur, had however commenced its works in Ellur gram panchayat limits. This clearance has been cancelled for different reasons on October 5, 2004. Further stating that the Ministry for Environment and Forests has said that no project work should be initiated in Ellur Panchayat limits, he added that public hearing should be organized mandatorily if the company files application for permit in the future for any reason.
He also alleged that the permit secured on January 31, 2005 was through wrong means.
He said the company which is expected to commence operations in April has machineries of 1015 mw capacity and is now saying that its capacity would increase to 1200 capacity which, Hegde said would require change of machinery. He alleged that the Lanco aimed at looting as much as Rs 10,000 crores from the government by producing bogus records.
Striving to save honour
Vijaykumar Hegde said the original owner of the Nagarjuna Company had to go behind bars in 41 cheque bounce cases following which the Nagarjuna sold the project to Lanco.
Even this company which tried to cheat the government in two major projects including the one in Haryana lost the same and in order to save its honour, had changed the name of the company in Udupi to Udupi Power Corporation Ltd.
He alleged that the company had felled 62 per cent of the trees in a 360 acre forest land of Ellur village without any approval. The cost of the felled trees is Rs 30 crores, while the forest department had admitted that the trees looted amounted to Rs 20 crores, he said adding the company still washed its hands off the case by merely paying a penalty of Rs 1.42 crores. A petition has been filed in the court in this regard, he said.
Related news: