Coal news and updates

Those residing in the areas near the Thiruvalla railway station are a desperate lot with the Railways’ decision to go ahead with its controversial cement yard project, disregarding the directions of the Kerala High Court, the State Pollution Control Board, State Human Rights Commission, the district administration, and the civic body.

Work started

The construction wing of Railways have already started work on a 40-wagon capacity cement yard attached to the railway station in sharp contrast to the long-pending public plea for shifting the yard to a more convenient and uninhabited place like Perunthuruthy or Nalukody where the Railways got sufficient land for the same.

The Forum of Residents’ Associations Thiruvalla (FORAT), an association of 16 residents’ associations in the town, has accused the Railway authorities of criminal negligence towards the serious public health problems and environmental issues posed by the proposed cement yard.

The FORAT alleged that a cement lobby-official nexus was behind the decision to construct the cement yard in the town limits itself, in scant disregard to the directions issued against it by various statutory bodies.

The forum will be submitting a memorandum to Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu soon seeking intervention in the matter, upholding his government’s ‘Vision-2025’ that promises people’s right to enjoy ‘clean air and water.’

The small cement yard functioning on the railway station premises was closed 18 months ago following the rail doubling work.

The Rail Passengers’ Association (RPA) and Thiruvalla Railview Residents’ Association (TRRA) had taken up the issue of the pollution menace with the SHRC, Kerala High Court, the SPCB, and the District Collector but to no avail, as the Railway officials failed to pursue the rule of law for reasons best known to them, Jacob Varghese, FORAT spokesman, alleged.

K.P. Paulose, FORAT president, said the bigger railway cement yard under construction posed hazardous pollution threat to the hundreds of families residing in the town limits.

Source: The hindu