Pushed to the wall, the Tamil Nadu government on Monday decided to permanently shut the controversial Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothukudi, protests against which claimed the lives of 13 people last week.
Chief Minister K Palaniswami said his administration has issued a Government Order (GO) to close the Rs 2,100-crore smelting plant that began its operations in 1996.
Palaniswami said the decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by him and attended by Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, senior ministers and other officials.
The decision comes amid vociferous demands for permanent closure of the Sterlite Copper plant from Thoothukudi residents who say that it has been wrecking their lives due to bad effluent management practices.
The chief minister did not give details about the GO, including the grounds for the closure.
The move is also aimed at deflecting criticism and debunking suggestions that the government was pro-Sterlite. It comes a day before the session begins in the Tamil Nadu Assembly.
Though the company has had run-ins with the people ever since it began operations, the fresh round of protests began in mid-February after Sterlite Copper announced a massive expansion plan at a cost of Rs 2,500 crore.
The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board had in March refused to renew Consent to Operate for the plant after which Sterlite Copper was shut down temporarily. After last Tuesday’s protests, the TNPCB had cut power and water supply to the plant.