Amaravati, Apr 22 (IANS): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday inaugurated Grasim Industries Ltd's Chlor-Alkali manufacturing unit at BB Puram in East Godavari district.
It is one of the largest Chlor-Alkali manufacturing projects in the country coming up with an investment of Rs 2,470 crore and providing employment to 2,400 people.
The Chief Minister said that this unit will boost the state's image and help it attract many industries. He stated that the government had already enacted legislation to employ 75 per cent of the locals, which would provide ample employment opportunities to the locals through the Grasim project, which belongs to Aditya Birla group.
Recalling the hurdles in the establishment of the unit, he said that the previous government had sanctioned the project just two months before the elections without resolving any of the ground level problems or addressing the people's concerns.
After his YSR Congress came to power, he said that they took corrective measures to resolve the issues. Jagan Mohan Reddy stated that the government has withdrawn the proposal of setting up a captive thermal plant and noted that Grasim Industries used advanced German technologies to address the problem of contamination of underground water, and included a recycling plant with zero liquid discharge facility to ensure that no liquid flowed out of the plant.
He assured that there will be only good things with the plant, where even CSR funds will be used for developing the local areas.
Earlier, Jagan Mohan Reddy had unveiled the plaque and visited the plant along with Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla. He announced that the government is withdrawing the cases filed against the 131 protesters who opposed the establishment of the plant due to pollution concerns.
Kumar Mangalam Birla lauded the state government's approach in setting up industries and thanked the Chief Minister for his contribution on this count. He stated that it was the eighth Chlor-Alkali plant in the country, which is expected to strengthen the East-West corridor.
He also said that the current project was set up with modern technology to cut down the pollution and assured to play a key role in skill upliftment in local areas.