Tirupur Dyers Association to plead for more time

Coimbatore, Jan 29 (PTI) Slapped with the closure order bythe Madras High Court for causing pollution, dyeing units inhosiery town of nearby Tirupur today decided to request thecourt to grant more time for complying with its directives oneffluent treatment.

At an emergent meeting, the Dyers Association of Tirupur(DAT) decided to appear before the court on Monday and requestit to provide a "minimum period" to ensure zero liquiddischarge facility in all the units, officials said.

A bench comprising Chief Justice M Y Eqbal and Justice T SSivagnanam yesterday directed Tamil Nadu Pollution ControlBoard (TNPCB) to close all bleaching and dyeing units forcontinued discharge of effluents into Noyyal river, on whosebanks Tirupur is located, in violation of its orders and thatof Supreme Court.

Passing orders on a contempt plea, the court had alsoordered electricity supply to the units be disconnected.

TNPCB sources said of the 752 bleaching and dyeing unitsin and around Tirupur, about 250 had already been closed.

Though the board had so far not received the officialorders from the high court, it would start the process ofdisconnecting power supply to the units, the sources said.

Tirupur Exporters Association (TEA) said it had written tothe Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, the Union and State TextileMinisters seeking their intervention to bail the industry outof this crisis, which, he said, involved the future of nearly4.5 lakh workers.

In his letters, copies of which were released to themedia, TEA President A Shaktivel said the life of more than4.5 lakh workers would "literally come to a standstill and allof them will grope about in the dark", if the issue was notresolved.

He said it was "most unfortunate to mention that thedirections of the Court would straight away affect the workingof knitwear exporting units, which are currently exportingRs 12,000 crore worth products annually and domestic units,having a Rs 3,000 crore business per annum."

The Tamil Nadu Farmers Association, however, welcomed theverdict and said that criminal action should be taken againstthose units, which had not complied with the order of theTNPCB despite having been given time.

A list of board officials who failed to strictly executethe earlier court order for ensuring zero discharge by thepolluting units, should be submitted to the court, theassociation president Vazhukkuparai Balu said.

TNPCB sources said a majority of the units were withoutzero liquid discharge certificate.