Tamil Nadu cancels land allocation to Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages

The Tamil Nadu government has cancelled the land allotted to Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd for its plant in Erode district, said an official.

An industries department official told IANS on the condition of anonymity: "A show-cause notice has been issued to the company on land allocation."

However, Additional Chief Secretary C.V.Sankar and the managing director of the State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu Ltd (SIPCOT) R.Selvaraj were not available for comments and clarifications when contacted by IANS.

Local people including farmers were against the cola plant at Perundurai and in March around 3,500 shops in Erode district had downed their shutters in protest.

The company was allotted around 71 acres in SIPCOT's industrial estate in Perundurai.

People were protesting against the plant as they feared it would deplete the ground water resources in the district. Perundurai is about 445 km from Chennai.

All the political parties, except the ruling AIADMK, had called for the protest against the plant.

Coca-Cola's bottling plant in Plachimada in Kerala was also strongly opposed by the local people.

The Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages had planned to set up the plant at an outlay of around Rs.500 crore.

Curiously the government's decision comes ahead of the global investors meet to be held here next month.

However, the AIADMK government had earlier categorically declared that it would not allow industrial projects that affect the farmers.