The Hindu

Udupi, Sep 27: The Udupi Taluk Panchayat on Tuesday, Sep 26 passed a unanimous resolution urging the State Government not to allow the Nagarjuna Power Corporation Ltd (NPCL) to set up its proposed 1,015-MW coal-based thermal plant at Yellur in Udupi district on environmental grounds.

Raising the issue, the Leader of the Opposition Katapady Shankar Poojary said the people of Yellur and its surrounding villages, where the plant was to be set up, were against it because it was a coal-based one. Lakshman Shetty, BJP member, said that though the High Court had directed the State Government to set up a committee to study the carrying capacity of the coastal districts, the Government had not taken any action on the issue. Reports of reputed institutes such as NEERI and DANIDA had warned against the setting up of a coal-based power project in Udupi district.

The hot water discharged from the Nagarjuna Power Plant into the sea would affect the production of the fish. The release of fly ash from the plant would affect Western Ghats. The agricultural operations too would be affected.

Ramesh Shetty of the Congress, Ramesh Poojary, Ramesh Kanchan and Kiran Kumar of the BJP, Sheena Poojary (independent) also opposed the setting up of a coal-based power project by NPCL.