Coca-Cola has shut down its bottling plant in Varanasi, PM Narendra Modi’s constituency, due to an alleged misuse of too much groundwater, a senior official said Wednesday.
The official of the anti-pollution board said the Mehdiganj plant in Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh had breached the conditions of its operating licence, prompting the order of closure.
“The plant has been shut down following our orders,” Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board member secretary J.S. Yadav told AFP. “They have also been asked to take suitable measures to recharge the depleting groundwater level by twice the amount they have extracted.
“Also, the effluents released by the plant contain pollutants beyond the permissible limits.” The plant was also asked to produce a permission certificate from a government agency that regulates ground water use, Yadav said. The company has appealed the closure order to India’s environment court, the National Green Tribunal, he said.
Coca-Cola, the world’s largest soft-drinks maker which has consistently denied the allegations, could not immediately be contacted for comment. The Indian unit of the company hit a hurdle earlier this year when local authorities said they would demolish the Varanasi plant, claiming it was built on village council land and was “illegal”.
The authorities also imposed 1,26,000 ($2,000) fine on Coca-Cola over the land issue. India is one of Coke’s fastest-growing markets. The bottling plant, one of 58 that Atlanta-based Coca-Cola has in India, has been at the centre of protests for years.
Demonstrators accuse the company of creating major water shortages through excessive extraction of water and of polluting groundwater and soil.
