Rasta-roko staged against ethanol factory in Nirmal

Members of the committee, locals and women blocked the traffic, causing inconvenience to motorists for around three hours. They raised slogans against the government for allowing the management to set up the plant in their village.

Nirmal: Members of a joint action committee staged a rasta-roko against establishment of an ethanol manufacturing factory, in Dilawarpur mandal centre on Tuesday.

Members of the committee, locals and women blocked the traffic, causing inconvenience to motorists for around three hours. They raised slogans against the government for allowing the management to set up the plant in their village. They demanded it to take steps to shift the factory to some other place, stating their farms would be polluted with the advent of the ethanol manufacturer.

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Traffic moving on Nirmal-Bhainsa road came to a standstill due to the protest. However, police rushed to the spot and held consultations with the agitators. They assured that they would bring the issue to the notice of the government. Following assurance given by the police, the members withdrew their protest and allowed traffic to move on the stretch.

Locals are strongly opposing establishment of an ethanol factory at Gundampalli village in Dilawarpur mandal, citing it would pollute their farms and throw their life out of the gear. They have been staging one or the other protest against the factory for over a year. They formed the JAC with an objective to prevent the establishment of the manufacturer.

A Hyderabad-based private organisation is founding an ethanol producing unit on the outskirts of Gundamapalli village costing Rs 100 crore. It bought around 60 acres of land to set up the factory. It secured permission from Telangana state pollution control board and other relevant government bodies to create the unit here. It commenced works on various structures of the factory.