Sterlite got green clearance after TN pollution panel nod: Official
New Delhi, May 25: The Union Environment Ministry had given clearance to the controversial Sterlite plant in Tamil Nadu's Thoothukudi after getting a go-ahead from the state pollution control board, an official said on Friday, dismissing the allegations that the Central government had directly cleared the copper smelting unit.
"No unit can operate in India, primarily, without the environmental clearance by the local pollution control board and this forms the basis for us to give environmental clearances," the official said, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media over the issue.
He, however, admitted that no public consultation had been conducted when the clearance was given in 2009.
The plant on Tuesday triggered the widespread protest in Thoothukudi, in which the death toll has rised to 13. The Madras High Court on Wednesday ordered a stay on the expansion of the copper plant.
In reply to a question on why the plant had not been initially ordered to shut down, the official said: "We need to check the records (to know that)."
"We have already sought a report from the District Collector and Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board," said the official on the sidelines of a curtain raiser press conference in the run-up to World Environment Day by Environment Forest and Climate Change Minister Harsh Vardhan.
The minister, however, refused to take media queries about the violence and the operations of the Vedanta-run copper plant.
"Let's stick to the theme and do not deviate from the topic," he said in reply to questions about the issue.
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Karnataka HM G Parameshwara blames EVM for Cong debacle in Maharashtra, backs ballot papers
BENGALURU: Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara on Monday alleged Electronic Voting Machine manipulations led to the defeat of Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance in just concluded assembly polls in Maharashtra.
While speaking to reporters here on Monday, he said the BJP does selective manipulations to convince people that there were no wrongdoings. He also wanted to go back to the paper ballots system.
The ruling BJP-led Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra won a landslide victory in the assembly elections, shattering the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi's dream to wrest power. The BJP won the highest ever 132 seats for the party, while the Shiv Sena led by Shinde bagged 57 seats and NCP won 41 seats to take the Mahayuti total to 230 seats. Congress as part of MVA won just 16 seats.
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"We analysed the Maharashtra poll outcome deeply. We felt that in many places EVMs were manipulated," Parameshwara said. He also said an obvious question would be why not it happened in Jharkhand and elsewhere. The manipulations are done selectively so that no one can question it, he blamed.
According to him, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha is a leading partner. Had the Congress been the leading partner, things would have changed. He backed the ballot papers saying that the same was discussed in Maharashtra Congress as well.
