Harish Rawat not in favour of proposed plants of Coke, Ultra Tech Cement

"I am not focusing on industrialisation," he said

In what is being seen as a setback to Coca Cola and Ultra Tech Cement which are setting up plants in Uttarakhand, new Chief Minister Harish Rawat has declared that he is not focusing on industrialisation.

“I am not focusing on industrialisation,” said Rawat commenting on the two top companies which have signed MoUs with the government last year to set up plants in the state. Both the companies are facing opposition from local people and environmentalists amid fears that the proposed plants may cause pollution in the state. Rawat completed one month in office on Saturday.

The sources close to the Chief Minister pointed out that Rawat is not in favour of all those industries which may harm the fragile ecology of the hill state. Significantly, the MoUs with the both companies were signed when Vijay Bahuguna was at the helm.

Hindustan Coca Cola Beverage Pvt Ltd (HCCBPL), the bottling partner of Coca Cola, on April 17 last year had signed MoU with the State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Ltd (SIDCUL), the government-controlled nodal agency for industrial development in the state, to set up a bottling plant at 60 acres of land at Chharba, near here.  

Since then, the government’s efforts to facilitate Coke to set up the plant has come cropper in the wake of strong opposition by local people and some environmentalists.

Similarly, cement giant Ultra Tech faced opposition at Someshwar in Kumaon region when the company officials went there for a survey for setting up a new manufacturing plant. The cement company is planning to set up two plants – one at Someshwar and other at Tyuni in Garhwal region.

In the wake of agitation by local people on environmental issues, the government is also treading a cautious path. While the proposed investment by Coke is around Rs 600 core, Ultra Tech is willing to invest Rs 5,000 crore in phased manner in the two plants.

Elaborating his point on the industrialisation, Rawat said he was focusing on the reconstruction and rehabilitation process in the wake of the June deluge that brought heavy devastation in the hill state. For rehabilitation of the affected people, Rawat said he wants to focus on the tourism, agriculture and forests for the revival of the hill economy.