Sterlite plant row: TN rejects Central report on Tuticorin groundwater
Chennai, Sep 8 : The Tamil Nadu government has rejected a Central government-sponsored report on the groundwater contamination in Tuticorin, saying it "prejudices" the state government cases in various courts against the Sterlite copper smelter plant of Vedanta Ltd.
Tamil Nadu had ordered the closure of the Tuticorin plant, around 650 km from Chennai, following protests and the death of 13 persons in police firing on May 22
The locals alleged the plant caused pollution and affected their health.
On a petition by Vedanta Ltd, the National Green Tribunal permitted access to the administrative office of the plant while barring access to the factory.
Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary Girija Vaidyanathan in a letter on Friday, made available today, to the Secretary, Union Ministry of Water Resources said the state government was extremely perturbed that the Ministry chose to commission a study and obtain a report from Central Ground Water Board in Tuticorin without any intimation to the state government or to any statutory body including the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB).
"The state strongly feels that the report is motivated and has been prepared only to prejudice the government and TNPCB cases in various courts," Vaidyanathan said.
Citing the report, she said it appeared to support Sterlite and "is absolutely vague and without any support of empirical data."
"It does not appear to be made on any scientific basis and it is not known how the two scientists who have submitted the report have made such a vague and an unsubstantiated statement in the report," Vaidyanathan said.
The concluding paragraph of the report as quoted by her read: "It is to mention that the investigation team couldn't enter the premises of Sterlite Copper Industry for collection of representative samples from inside and outside of industry; because district authorities sealed the Sterlite Copper Plant following the government order to close down the plant permanently. Therefore, it can't be stated that Sterilte Industry is the only cause of pollution."
Vaidyanathan said on the basis of scientific studies, TNPCB has concluded that the level of pollution caused by the Sterlite Copper Smelting Plant has gravely affected the health and safety of residents in the locality, warranting closure of the industry.
"To safeguard the environment, a fundamental duty is imposed on the state by virtue of Article 48-A of the Constitution of India. Hence the government of Tamil Nadu ordered permanent closure of the industry," Vaidyanathan said.
She said the TNPCB has conducted detailed studies before ordering the closure of Sterlite copper smelter plant. The matter is sub judice before the National Green Tribunal, Madras High Court and the Supreme Court.
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Gurugram Police arrest BJP Yuva Morcha member for spreading fake murder story on social media
New Delhi: Gurugram Police have arrested BJP Yuva Morcha member Hariom Mishra, for allegedly spreading a fabricated and communally sensitive story on social media about the murder of a college student in Gurugram.
Mishra who is also known as Shaurya Mishra had shared a collage of four photographs on his X handle earlier this month. He claimed that a 24-year-old college student, identified as Nikita Agarwal, had been murdered by her classmate Arif Khan in Gurugram. In the post, he alleged that the woman was blackmailed, forced into prostitution, gangraped, and eventually killed. He also claimed that Arif dumped her body in a forest. The claims were presented as being based on police sources.
The post went viral and garnering over 1.5 lakh views, and was amplified by several right-wing social media handles across X, Facebook and Instagram. A verification of the claims revealed that no such incident had taken place in Gurugram. A search of credible news reports showed no record of any such murder. The police said this news would have inevitably attracted media attention if it were true.
On December 11, Gurugram Police publicly refuted the claims through their official X handle. They stated that the information which was being circulated was completely false. The police warned that legal action would be taken against those spreading misinformation. Despite the warning, Mishra neither deleted the post nor issued any clarification.
Police in Gurugram confirmed Mishra's arrest on December 16. The police said a FIR was filed after he continued to spread false information about the alleged murder of a Hindu woman by Muslim man. Police said Mishra, a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Kaushambi district, is now being investigated.
Gurugram Police spokesperson Sandeep Singh told The Print that the accused had deliberately misrepresented facts and used objectionable content to spread hatred along religious lines. “Such posts can create serious disturbances in society, and the police take these matters very seriously,” he said.
A reverse image search conducted by fact-checkers at Alt News, revealed that the photographs used in the viral post were unrelated to the claims, while two of the images were traced to a Pinterest account belonging to influencer Maulik Chopra and another image was sourced from an Instagram post by influencer Shivam Thakur featuring a woman named Deepanshi Rawat. The fourth image was found on an unrelated Instagram page. The images depicted different individuals and had no connection to any crime.
Police said they are also investigating Mishra’s motive behind sharing the false and provocative content.
