Residents and activists have protested against the construction of a liquid waste treatment plant at Mennai Bettu near Mulki in Dakshina Kannada, alleging that the facility is being built close to homes, schools, religious sites and drinking-water sources without adequate public consultation.
The protest was held outside the Kinnigoli Town Panchayat office on October 16, where demonstrators demanded that construction of the facility be stopped and that the official who granted permission for the project be identified. The protesters submitted a memorandum to Town Panchayat chief officer Jayashankar Prasad after the demonstration.
Shalet Pinto, chairperson of the Environment and Tourism Board, said the plant had been permitted in a locality where people live and where places of worship, a school campus and drinking-water flows are located. She said opposition to the facility would continue without political affiliation, according to the report.
Sandeep Shetty, president of the committee opposing the plant, said more than 500 houses are located around the proposed facility. He expressed concern that odour and mosquitoes from the plant could create conditions conducive to the spread of infectious diseases. He also alleged that contaminated water could seep into the ground and affect wells and borewells in surrounding areas.
The protesters said the facility is situated amid schools, a hospital, a church, a mosque, a temple and a market area. Their concerns centre on the location of the project and the possible effects of liquid waste management on local living conditions and groundwater. These claims were made by the protesters during the demonstration and were not independently assessed in the report.
Activist Deepak Rodrigues alleged that a gram sabha had not been held to obtain residents’ consent before the project began. He demanded that construction be halted immediately and alleged that government officials had supported the project. Other participants included Robert Rosario, Sudhakar, Hemacharya, town panchayat members Sunitha Rodrigues, Kokila and Santan D’Souza, and several local residents.
Mulki police provided security during the protest. The submitted memorandum places the next response with the Kinnigoli Town Panchayat, whose chief officer received the residents’ representation. The report does not state whether the project has received environmental clearances, what treatment technology is planned, or whether construction will be paused.
