No dyeing units at Integrated Textile Park, says District Collector
The Salem District Collector announced that dyeing units will be excluded from the Integrated Textile Park following protests from local farmers concerned about groundwater contamination. The project has been rebranded, and industrial land will now be reserved exclusively for textile-related manufacturing.
Why it matters
This reflects the tension between industrial development and environmental protection, highlighting the power of local community advocacy in policy decisions.
District Collector K. Elambahavath on Friday (July 24) said that dyeing units will not be established at the Integrated Textile Park.
The State government had identified 119 acres of land at Jahir Ammapalayam to establish an integrated textile park at a cost of ₹880 crore. As part of the project, dyeing units were to be operated under the name of Salem Yarn Colouring Park (SYCP) in the same place with a Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP).
But alleging that this colouring park would affect the groundwater and farming in about 40 villages in and around the park, farmers and villagers had staged many protests over the past one year. Following the protests, the textile park works were halted.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in