Chrome dust ruins cotton farming

Post News Network

Rayagada, Dec 15: The huge amount of chrome dust emitted from the Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys (Imfa) plant at Therubali in the district has ruined cotton cultivation on hundreds of acres in four villages on the periphery of the plant.
A delegation of more than a hundred farmers who suffered heavy crop loss lodged a complaint with the district administration at the grievance redressal cell of the district collector Monday.
The farmers alleged that the cotton plants do not flower because of the pollution caused by the chrome-dust emitting plant. People who had cultivated the crop earlier had to harvest very poor quality produce as the chrome dust had changed the colour of cotton. Traders are reluctant to buy the poor quality cotton even at a very cheap rate, they said.
Mamata Puala of Siliput village pointed out that she had taken a loan of Rs 1.3 lakh from a bank to cultivate cotton. However, after harvesting, she cannot even sell a kg of the cotton as chrome dust has deposited on it and the colour of the cotton had changed, Mamata said.
Another farmer alleged that several complaints to the plant authorities have gone in vain. Whenever they complain, the company authorities say the plant does not produce chrome dust, the farmer claimed.
Chrome dust is emitted only at night as a type of brick is prepared at night in the plant using chrome dust, lime and molasses, and during that time the area surrounding the plant is covered by the powdered substance. The company does not prepare the bricks during the day to avoid public ire, said the farmer.
The farmers also lodged a complaint with the regional officer of the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) and the deputy director of agriculture.
Mitrasen Majhi of the SPCB said an investigation has been conducted. Measures would be taken to sort out the issue after apprising the higher officials of the matter, he said.
The government had distributed more than 100 acre land to landless people belonging to Siliput, Relipadar, Kartikaguda and Kansariguda villages under Auguda mauza around 1 km from Imfa campus several years ago. People belonging to the economically backward community have been growing several crops to earn their livelihood for years. However, their sole means of sustenance was shattered after the expansion of the plant.