Coca-Cola Project Cancelled by Government in India

Coca-Cola Project Cancelled by Government in India

Community Opposed Project for Pollution, Water Concerns

New Delhi, India: Bowing to public outrage, the state government of Tamil Nadu in south India has cancelled plans for a new Coca-Cola bottling plant in Perundurai in Erode district.

In a letter dated April 20, 2015, the State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT), a government agency, informed Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Private Limited (HCCBPL) that the land allotted to HCCBPL had been canceled.

The cancellation of the land allotted to Coca-Cola for a Rs. 500 crore (USD 80 million) bottling plant came as the result of an extremely well-coordinated campaign led by farmers and political parties who opposed Coca-Cola’s plant because it would worsen the already existing water shortages in the area, and bring more pollution into the area.

Residents in Perundurai cited the dismal track record of Coca-Cola in India – creating water shortages across the country and polluting with toxic chemicals – as their main reasons for opposing Coca-Cola.

Coca-Cola had claimed that it would not draw groundwater and obtain water from the river Cauvery, and that it would not pollute – but failed to placate the community’s strong reservations on the company’s dismal track record on water management and pollution prevention.

The opposition to Coca-Cola was widespread, and a bandh (strike) organized on March 5, 2015 asking shops and businesses to shut down to show opposition to Coca-Cola was a major success.

A large protest was slated for April 30, 2015 and organizers expected more than ten thousand to rally against Coca-Cola. The police had denied permission for the protest but the organizers had just succeeded in getting the High Court to rule in their favor on April 9, 2015. Discussions are underway in Perundurai on whether the protests will still take place on April 30.

The groundwater resources in Perundurai have been declared as “over-exploited” by the government, a category indicating the worst degree of groundwater depletion. Perundurai is also one of India’s most polluted places, and it is not uncommon for groundwater to be colored dark red from industrial pollution.

“Perundurai is one of India’s most polluted places, and we were determined that we do not want another highly polluting company like Coca-Cola to come here”, said Myilsamy Murugasamy, an activist from Perundurai who was key in bringing national and international allies, including the India Resource Center, to the campaign.

Another Coca-Cola bottling plant, located about 150 kms west of Perundurai in a village called Plachimada in the state of Kerala, was closed by the state government authorities in 2004 because of rampant toxic pollution by the Coca-Cola bottling plant. The company currently faces legislation holding it liable for $47 million in damages as a result of its operations.

“We were made aware of the dangers of Coca-Cola through the campaign in Plachimada where the company had contaminated the land and water, and depleted the groundwater. After learning about the issues, we decided that we did not want Coca-Cola in our area”, said C. Velusamy, a key organizer with Perundurai Environment Protection Trust.

Organizers of the campaign to reject Coca-Cola are now determined to use the latest victory to challenge industrial pollution in the area.

“This is a great victory for the people of Perundurai, we put all our efforts to stop Coca-Cola and we have succeeded. Now we will focus on the other polluting industries in the area so that we can bring back the good air, land and water for our people”, said V. M. Kandasamy, chairperson of Perundurai Environment Protection Trust.

The rejection of its proposed bottling plant in Perundurai is a major setback for Coca-Cola in India as it tries to expand aggressively to compensate for rapidly declining sales in the industrialized countries.

In August 2014, Coca-Cola was forced to abandon a fully built $25 million bottling plant in Mehdiganj in Uttar Pradesh because the government rejected its application as a result of community pressure.

In April 2014, another proposed Coca-Cola bottling plant – in Charba in Uttarkhand state – was rejected due to community opposition.

The company also faces significant opposition in various parts of India where it has located its bottling plant in water-stressed areas, and challenges to Coca-Cola’s bottling operations are expected to grow as water conditions deteriorate across the country.

“Coca-Cola’s decisions to locate its bottling plants are driven purely by market logic and have no regard for the well-being of the communities around it. Such a selfish and arrogant model is not sustainable in India, and it will continue to fail as it has in Perundurai, said Amit Srivastava of the India Resource Center who worked with the groups in Perundurai to oppose Coca-Cola.

ENDS

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