The Hindu Business Line : CM tells MPs to push Iffco proposal on FACT

THE Chief Minister, Mr A.K. Antony, has requested Members of Parliament from the State to use all forces at their command in order to pre-empt the sell-out of the Central sector Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore Ltd (FACT) to unscrupulous private investors, and instead make coordinated efforts to take to logical conclusion the initiative for its handover to the co-operative sector with fertiliser giant Iffco at the helm.

Addressing a meeting of the MPs convened here in the run-up to the next Parliament session, Mr Antony said the Iffco-led move would ensure that the interests of thousands of FACT employees are adequately taken care of. The Chief Minister also called for concerted action from the MPs to see that the Rs 30,000-crore worth of investments promised by the Prime Minister during his last visit to the State were translated into reality.

Mr Antony told the MPs that the State Government had decided to take up on war-footing meaningful measures to protect the State's water resources. A consensus to this effect had emerged at the all-party meeting he had convened here recently. The Centre needed to be apprised about the strong public opinion in this regard emerging in recent times.

The Centre had included the Pampa-Achenkoil-Vaippar link in the national river inter-linking programme, much to the detriment of the State's interests.

All the three rivers were west flowing, and their drainage course fell well within the territorial boundaries of the State giving it unalienable rights to their waters. The scheme for linking these three rivers could not be accepted under any circumstances.

If implemented, the project would inundate thousands of acres of land in central Kerala, making Kottayam, Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts perennially drought-affected, apart from leading to massive fall in the groundwater table.

As many as 12 existing drinking water schemes were dependent on supplies from these three rivers, and they would be badly affected.

The low-lying Kuttanad areas would have to face grave environmental hazards arising from the heightened threats from seawater entering the paddy lands.

A major developmental issue that had to be sorted out was the situation emerging from the continued exclusion of the State from the Golden Quadrilateral project. In the circumstances, the MPs should argue the State's case for having its national highway network widened to four and six lanes.

The long-pending crisis in the plantations sector also needed an expedited settlement. The Centre should be apprised of the harmful effect the recent ruling on import of natural rubber would have on the State's economy, the Chief Minister said.

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