"Closing of industrial companies in the name of pollution is not the answer, it won’t alleviate problems; on the other hand, steps should be taken to effectively control the pollution,” said Opposition Leader V S Achuthanandan at Kadungallur near here on Friday.
He was speaking at a function organised to congratulate Saran S Kartha, the joint managing director of Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) on the occasion of his induction to the senate of the Cochin University of Science and Technology as the industrial representative. While congratulating Kartha, VS said CMRL was successful in getting the support of the trade unions, which is an important factor in running a company. It is also important for a company to share the profits with its employees. He said the company has succeeded in both measures.
“When a big enterprise like CMRL is functioning, complaints will come up from various quarters naturally. But, as the promoters of the company both father and son should find out solutions,” VS said.
“Periyar is our lifeline and there have been complaints about polluting its water. Industrial companies have to take extra care to protect the water bodies,” VS said.
Public Works Minister V K Ebrahim Kunju said ilmenite is the basic raw material of CMRL and the company is not directly exporting it to make money. On the other hand, it is making value-added products from the raw material. Even at a time when other developing countries he has visited have distinguished the importance of value addition, there’s no point in our country going back from it. It will be a loss if we did not think in those terms and set ourselves on those tracks.
VS presented a memento to Kartha on the occasion. Others who spoke on the occasion are K K Jinnas, Kadungalloor grama panchayat, V M Sasi, CMRL Workers Union general secretary and C K Padmanabhan, BJP National Council member.
CMRL is manufacturing the best quality synthetic rutile from ilmenite, and it is the country’s largest exporter of aqua ferric chloride.