Kerala govt backed brewery project in Palakkad village faces stiff opposition

Palakkad(Kerala), Oct 23 (PTI) A Kerala government-backed proposal to set up a liquor plant in Elappully village here is facing stiff opposition from the panchayat, which recently held a grama sabha to collect signatures against the project. The village panchayat is to explore a legal route to stop the project. However, the state government appears unfazed by the panchayat’s initiative. Local Self Government and Excise Minister M B Rajesh said on Thursday that the panchayat was “not an independent sovereign republic” and was subject to the laws of the land. He said that the brewery project was approved by the state cabinet, subject to it getting all necessary permissions. “If it gets all the requisite permissions, there is no hurdle against its establishment under the government policy,” he said, adding that “everything will happen in accordance with the law”. The Elappully panchayat, on the other hand, is planning to strongly oppose the project, claiming it would adversely affect the environment and agriculture of the village and the surrounding area within a 15-kilometre radius. Elappully panchayat president Revathi Babu told a TV channel on Thursday that in a recent special grama sabha held in one of the 22 wards of the village, hundreds of people, including LDF members, participated and the majority of them signed the resolution to oppose the project. She said that similar special grama sabhas will be held in other wards and more signatures of the people would be collected. Babu also said that two panchayat members have already joined as parties in a case in the Kerala High Court opposing the brewery project. Besides that, the panchayat has also decided to initiate litigation against the project, she added. The panchayat president also requested the CPI ministers in the state government to strongly oppose the project from inside as it was not in the interests of the people of the village. The state cabinet, in January, had approved a proposal by Oasis Commercial Pvt Ltd to set up the liquor plant, subject to compliance with existing guidelines and conditions, in Elappully village. In February, the Palakkad Revenue Divisional Office (RDO) had rejected the company’s application for conversion of the paddy field for industrial purposes, as it is not permitted under the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act. PTI HMP HMP ADB