India News | TDP Opposes Setting Up of Bulk Drug Park in AP, Claims Its a Threat to Livelihoods

Amaravati, Sep 1 (PTI) The main opposition Telugu Desam Party has opposed the establishment of a Bulk Drug Park (BDP) in Kakinada district of Andhra Pradesh claiming that it posed a grave threat to the environment besides the livelihoods of farmers and fishermen in the region.

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The BDP could also consequently endanger food production as thousands of acres of cultivable land would be adversely affected, Leader of Opposition in the AP Legislative Council, Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, has said.

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In a letter to the Union Department of Pharmaceuticals Joint Secretary on Thursday, Yanamala highlighted the threat posed by the proposed BDP and sought the Centre's immediate intervention to stop it. He marked the copy of the letter to the National Green Tribunal Chairman as well.

On August 30, the Department of Pharmaceuticals communicated the Centre's in-principle approval for the setting up of the BDP over 2,000 acres of land in Thondangi mandal in Kakinada district.

AP was the third State after Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh to be chosen for the BDP under a scheme brought-in by the Union Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers.

Under the scheme, AP would receive a grant-in-aid of Rs 1,000 crore for creation of infrastructure for the BDP.

"Most of the people living here (Thondangi region) belong to the backward classes and are mostly farmers and fishermen. There are about 300 hatcheries in the area. The BDP will endanger their livelihood as the pharma units will cause air, soil and water pollution, apart from leaving the Bay of Bengal also contaminated," the TDP politburo member pointed out.

He recalled that people of the region had earlier launched an agitation against the establishment of a pharma company by Aurobindo.

Yanamala also pointed out that the National Green Tribunal levied a penalty of Rs 6.94 crore on Hetero Drugs for violating pollution control norms in neighbouring Nakkapalli mandal in the vicinity.

"River Jammeru flows through Thondangi, catering to the irrigation needs of farmers in the region. The pharma industry will pose a great threat to the river that is filled with backwaters of Bay of Bengal," Yanamala said.

In light of the facts, he requested that the Centre intervene immediately and stop the establishment of BDP in Thondangi, adhering to the Environment Protection Act, 1986 and the Coastal Regulatory Zone Notification, 2019.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)