Mettur, 14 October, 2012 — A gas leak from Chemplast’s Plant III that lasted from 5.30 to 6.15 p.m. on October 13, 2012, sent more than 16 people, including 7 children aged 5 to 17, to the hospital. Affected people described the gas as white coloured smoke that smelled like crushed Papaya leaves, and caused […]
Mettur, 2 October 2012: Residents of Gonur Panchayat who gathered at the Gandhi Jayanti Grama Sabha today, said they will return their Voter Identification cards and Family Ration cards, if their demands for justice are not met by the State and District Administrations. The President of Gonur Panchayat Mr.Tamizhvaanan and the Chairman of the Nangavalli […]
Mettur, 18th September 2012 – The Tamilnadu Water Supply and Drainage Board has pasted cautionary notices on a sintex tank and a hand pump supplying drinking water drawn from borewells in Thippampatti and Veerakkalpudur. The bright red official notices prominently carry a warning in Tamil stating: “This water in unfit for drinking.” These notices have […]
Mettur, 13th September 2012: A delegation of officials from the Tamilnadu Water Supply and Drainage Board, Salem, from the District Collector’s office and from the RDO’s office, have visited Chemplast Plant III premises, along with the Chairman of Gonur Panchayat office and the President of the Nangavalli Panchayat Union. As earlier promised by the Collector […]
Mettur, 12 September 2012: Salem District Administration convened two peace committee meetings to defuse tension after farmers belonging to a left-leaning agricultural trade union threatened to go on protest against Chemplast’s pollution. The farmers union has alleged that pollution from Chemplast has damaged groundwater and affected people’s and livestock’s health, and harmed their livelihoods. […]
Mettur, 11 September 2012: An explosion rocked the thermal plant in Chemplast Sanmar at around 6 a.m. on 11 September; safety valves and other plant equipment were ejected as missiles and landed more than 100 feet away near the cooling tower. Workers in the vicinity ran away from the plant to save themselves. There […]
Mettur, 7 September 2012: In response to the Chennai High Court’s dictate on the environmental crisis in Mettur, an investigative expert committee has been set up to ascertain the facts of the case. On the 4th and 6th of September, individuals and groups from the Mettur community accompanied a fact finding team of government […]