The National Green Tribunal has ordered the reopening of the controversial Sterlite copper smelter. The plant was charged with causing environmental pollution and spewing suspected carcinogenic material. The people of Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi had been vociferous opponents of the plant, against which they were holding peaceful protests for 100 days until matters exploded with police firing that killed 13 people on May 22. The state government intends to appeal against the NGT order in the Supreme Court, which is its legal right.
There are two aspects to the explosive issue. The first is about environmental degradation and the second is the firing, with which Sterlite had nothing to do. What the State, guilty of ordering the firing on people, must do is to follow the law while taking further action to question the plant’s existence. Public sentiment alone can’t determine the course of action, such as local officials saying they won’t follow the NGT order.
The third view, prevailing locally, is about the loss of jobs and the livelihood of employees as well as contractors and suppliers, and how they would like the plant to operate again. A way out would be to order a thorough scientific inquiry into all aspects of the plant, and also considering the issue of what a shutdown would mean to the Indian copper industry, that would otherwise have to import the requirements. The problem is that it would be impossible to conduct any process without provoking public protests in the current environment. The State, by opening fire, has landed the plant, the people and itself in an imbroglio, defying a logical solution.
