When I happened to walk along the bridge over Gadilum (connecting Thirupadhiripuliyur and Manjakuppam) I saw a huge heap of worn out clothes strewn from the top of the old bridge.These dumps are adding much strain to the already polluted local ecosystem.
Location is North side of East end of the new bridge.
I invite anyone of you to take photo and send it to cuddaloreonline for posting it in our blog.
Nagarjuna refinery to tie up funds soon-Business Standard
Gayatri Ramanathan / Mumbai September 28, 2006
The six-million tonne refinery at Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu, promoted by the Nagarjuna group and the Tamil Nadu government is expected to complete financial closure by the end of the year.
Company sources said that most of the debt for the Rs 4,750-crore project was already tied up and that the group was in talks with several small foreign oil companies, including Russia’s Itera group, for equity placements.
“We are not sure if Itera will take up equity at this point, as we are still talking with them. We are also in talks with several other foreign companies for equity but cannot reveal any names,” said a source close to the development.
Tata Sons has already picked up a 26-per cent stake at Rs 400 crore in the project and is expected to hike it to 40 per cent at a later stage, sources said. This will be Tata group’s first foray into the down-stream refining sector.
Indian refining major, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), has also picked up a 10-per cent stake in the project through its subsidiary, Indian Oil Corporation Tankers.
IOC has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Nagarjuna Oil Corporation for marketing its products such as LPG, Euro-IV motor spirit, high-speed diesel, fuel oil petrochemical, naphtha and sulphur.
The Nagarjuna group will have a 51-per cent equity stake in the project, while co-promoter Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation holds 5 per cent. Krupp Uhde, the EPC contractor has a 7 per cent stake in the firm.
`Childline’ in 72 cities - The Hindu
Effluent leak from Arkema pipeline to CUSECS 2
Cuddalore, 21 September 2006: A leak in the effluent pipeline of Arkema Peroxide to CUSECS pump no 2 was reported at about 7:45 am today. According to the SACEM monitors, the leak was detected on the pipeline near a mini sump before CUSECS 2.
Though a substantial quantity of water had leaked the monitors reported that there was no unpleasant odour or discolouration of the water. The matter was immediately reported to the Joint Chief Environment Engineer of TNPCB. More information on the action is awaited.
SIPCOT Residents Block Highway to Protest PVC Plant
Cuddalore, 17 September 2006: About 800 villagers, mostly women from SIPCOT villages, organised a salai marial (road blockade) of the National Highway passing through the industrial estate, less than a day after learning that the Tamilnadu Pollution Control Board had issued “Consent for Establish” to Chemplast Sanmar to set up a 140,000 tons per annum PVC factory in SIPCOT. Residents of Sangolikuppam, Semmankuppam, Vairamkuppam, Sonanchavadi, Chitrapettai and Nochikadu blocked the national highway demanding that the proposal to set up the PVC plant be abandoned immediately. They alleged that the TNPCB had caved in to political pressure and granted consent without giving villagers an opportunity to present their concerns. They said the TNPCB had granted the consent even before its own conditions had been fulfilled.
“The turnout of villagers was substantial despite intense mobilisation the previous night by Chemplast’s agents who went around to each household asking, threatening and discouraging people from joining the action,” said Vijay Kumar, a retired military man from Sangolikuppam who was one of the organisers of the blockade.
Around 30 police personnel including women cops and the village Tahsildar arrived on the scene to get the situation under control. Villagers who addressed the crowd during the action said they would not allow Chemplast to come up, and warned co-villagers against believing company’s promises for jobs. “Jobs are only for engineers. How many engineers do you have in your village? In return for your health and environment, you’ll be lucky if you get a coolie’s job,” said one speaker.
The villagers dispersed peacefully only after the Inspector of Police for Cuddalore OT police station assured them that no construction would be permitted until villagers met the District Collector on 19th September.
Since 2001, when the project was first mooted, SIPCOT residents have opposed the setting up of a PVC factory in Semmankuppam. In July 2003, the Indian People’s Tribunal headed by Justice (Retd) J. Kanakaraj of the Madras High Court recommended against the setting up of any new polluting industries in SIPCOT. The panel specifically warned against setting up the PVC factory considering that PVC is a poison plastic whose production, usage and disposal are associated with the release of deadly environmental poisons.
Rejected by Cuddalore residents, Chemplast shifted its proposal to Krishnapatnam in coastal Andhra Pradesh. However, villagers and fisherfolk in Krishnapatnam gathered in massive numbers and opposed the proposal at a public hearing organised by the district authorities. Owing to public pressure, the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board did not grant consent. In 2005, the company modified the proposal and added new components including a desalination plant and re-submitted the proposal to the Tamilnadu Pollution Control Board.
Villagers complain that the company manages to secure appointments with TNPCB and even Ministers with ease to get its job done. They say that numerous petitions by villagers to the District Collector and the TNPCB regarding the existing pollution and requesting that no further pollution be added have been ignored by the officials.
Villagers have said that they will continue their peaceful agitation against the company until the proposal is dropped, and will also take up this issue in the upcoming local body elections.
This article appeared several days back in The Hindu
Nursing home told to cough up Rs. 2 lakh for negligence
A new police outpost is being built in Silver Beach by the Government of Rajasthan. Old police outpost was brought down by tsunami. Police personnel incharge of maintaining order in the beach had to spend their evenings in open air for more than an year. Boomi pooja was conducted about a couple of months back and the construction work has started in full swing.
Above is the picture of perimeter wall of Periyar Arts & Science College, Thevanampattinam. This new wall was constructed after the tsunami pulled down the old wall. The design is visually appealing and it is such,for the next tsunami, the wall wont be pulled down by water, instead it would let the water pass through. Intelligent Design.
Hydrocarbon sector investment advisory firm Global Union Energy Ventures on Tuesday announced its entry into India and said it aimed to finance at least three major projects every year in the range of $500 million to $5 billion.
“We are talking to all the major players in the downstream and midstream sectors in India and hope to do at least three major projects on an annual basis,” Global Union Energy Ventures Chairman Jeffrey Waterous said.
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The company is part financing the Nagarjuna Oil Corp’s refinery project in Cuddalore, being built at a cost of $1.1 billion on the east coast.
The mothballed refinery project will have a capacity of 1,25,000 barrels a day. “We are acting as a financial advisor to this project,” Waterous said full story>>
Gifted lands cannot be sold for 30 years: Minister-The Hindu
…………….The benefit of free land was made available to all sections of the society, he said. For instance, in Cuddalore, 990.63 acres were given away on Monday to 1,380 beneficiaries. They included Adi Dravidars–407, Backward Classes–275, Most Backward Classes–694 and others–four.
The lands were located at Cuddalore–90 acres, Panruti–168 acres, Chidambaram–80 acres, Vriddhachalam–705 acres, Thittakudi–286 acres and Kattumannarkoil–51 acres.
The Minister said 5,599 acres of land had been identified for free distribution in the entire district with the number of beneficiaries put at 7,482. Wherever necessary, officials of the Agriuclture Department would test the quality of the soil, he said full story>>
“NLC’s green cover efforts remarkable”- The Hindu
“Dense foliage in the township has cut mean temperature by 2 degree Celsius”.
14 life convicts on indefinite fast demanding release -Ind Law News