Little less than four weeks after its inauguration on March 4 by the Chief Minister of Kerala, a Rs 250 crore integrated gold manufacturing and designing unit by Malabar Gold in an industrial park in Kakkanchery in Malappuram district, the High Court issued a direction to stop manufacturing of gold jewellery there. The March 28 order by Justice Viju Abraham was on a petition filed by A Balakrishnan, president, Kakkancherry Paristhithi Samithi, a forum for protection of environment.
“It is made clear that this Court has not issued any order prohibiting the 9th respondent from functioning the unit, but only directed that the activity of assembling gold ornaments (not manufacturing) shall be undertaken by the 9th respondent (Malabar Gold Private Limited),” the court said. Though the court did not stay the functioning of the unit, which occupies a built-up space of 1.75 lakh square feet, the verdict offered a slight relief for residents of the area.
Kakkanchery residents had been agitating against the unit ever since it was proposed because the industrial park under the Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (KINFRA),where it has come up, was originally designed as a food park. The court order came 24 days after the CM inaugurated the unit. The residents of Kakkanchery are however upset as they feel promises made to them by EP Jayarajan, former Industries minister in Pinarayi cabinet, have not been kept.
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Gold manufacturing and designing unit by Malabar Gold in Kakkanchery
Kakkanchery residents Sudha and Rema, who were part of the agitation against the unit, are disappointed because they feel it has now failed. “The whole of Kakkancherry protested against Malabar Gold for six years in a shed. We were scared that our drinking water and air would be polluted. They promised they would not start the business here, which everyone believed. But one day the CM came and inaugurated it,” said Sudha, pointing towards the entrance of KINFRA park, where the protester’s shed stood. The shed was removed as part of National Highway widening work.
Balakrishnan, a retired central government employee and president of the samithi, said they resorted to protest after an RTI revealed that a jewellery manufacturing unit is coming up in an area left out as a commercial zone of the 70-acre park.
According to him, in the 1970s, the land was acquired by Calicut University. Later, it was taken over by KINFRA, which wanted to build a food park. The foundation stone for the park was laid in 2003 when AK Antony was the Chief Minister. “Around 10 acres was converted to an IT park where many IT firms work now and in the front side around 2.5 acres of land was left out. They said it was a commercial zone,” he said.
Balakrishnan, president of the Samara Samithi
In August 2013, the land left out as a commercial zone, was given to Malabar Gold under a lease agreement for 30 years. Foundation stone was laid in October that year by then Industries Minister PK Kunhalikutty.
Residents of the area were concerned since the project report had said that the unit will initially produce 40 kilograms of gold jewellery per day and within 30 months the capacity will be raised to 120 kilograms per day. Hydrochloric acid, sulphuric acid and nitric acid are generated as waste during the process of gold processing, which the residents felt would cause adverse environmental impact, said Balakrishnan. The process also involved the use of potassium cyanide and many metals including mercury, zinc and lead. “Above all, around 93,000 litres of polluted water would also be generated,” he said, explaining why they launched the agitation under a collective called Kakkanchery Paristhithi Samrakshana Samithi in 2014. The impact of pollution due to gold manufacturing in Mariyapuram in Thrissur also weighed heavily on their minds.
Sreedharan, another resident and an active member of Samara Samithi said local leaders of all the political parties were involved in the protest. “It was a popular protest, the whole panchayat took part in it. Our protest venue had the flags of all political parties,” he said.The many food processing units inside the park including baby food makers were concerned because they depended on water sources inside the park. The area also has a high groundwater level, according to the residents. The KINFRA Industries Chamber, an organisation of food processing units in the park, too were opposed to it and moved the Kerala High Court.
Sreedharan, member Samara Samithi
HC stayed gold manufacturing by the unit but building work wasn’t stopped and led to conflicts as machinery brought to the site were blocked which led to police cases. In 2018, however, while disposing off the petition by the KINFRA Industries Chamber, the court accepted KINFRA’s argument that the "industrial park is not conceived as a food park alone and that it has several zones including food zone, agro based zone, IT/ITES zone and a general zone." It was also stated that KINFRA will take all precautions that the "industry does not cause pollution as is apprehended by the petitioners and that it conforms to all the requirements of a green category industry."
The court said: “It is made clear that the project will proceed only with all due clearances and permission and in accordance with the specific terms of the consent issued to it as a green category industry…official respondents shall take all steps to see that the project conforms to the provisions of the Prevention and Control of Pollution (Uniform Consent Procedure) Rules, 1999.” But the agitation continued and was backed by almost all political parties.
Protest outside KINFRA
In March 2021, the Samara Samithi had a meeting with EP Jayarajan, then Industries minister. Representatives of Panchayath, Revenue Department, pollution control board, KINFRA officials and representatives of Malabar Gold met in the senate hall of Calicut University. “In that meeting Jayarajan declared that considering our protests, Malabar Gold will not do any manufacturing of ornaments at the KINFRA park. Even Malabar Gold representatives agreed to this and said they will make use of the building as a mall. So they asked us to withdraw the protest to allow completion of the work, since it was closed for six years,” Balakrishnan said.
A five-member committee was also formed to ensure that the promise is kept, said Balakrishnan. “From then onwards the samithi did not block the gates. But without our knowledge they started manufacturing. In December 2022, we visited the unit and realised that they have started manufacturing there,” Balakrishnan said, alleging that the government broke the promise it made .
The samithi shot off complaints to all authorities, including Industries minister P Rajeev. “There is a large room in the building with furnaces where they use chemicals and acids," Balakrishnan alleged. The Samithi is of the view that Jayarajan might have either manipulated them or became silent after he ceased to be a minister.
TNM reached out to EP Jayarajan and the current Industries minister P Rajeeve for comments but calls and messages sent to them were not answered.
In a statement to TNM, Malabar Gold Pvt Limited group Chairman MP Ahammed said the unit is a jewellery assembling and design studio and not a manufacturing unit and would not cause any pollution. The company has set up the latest technologies and facilities in the unit to ensure this, he said. The unit has already given jobs to 600 people, including 200 women, the statement said, adding that the number of employees will go up to 1000 once it is fully functional.
“It has also put in place a mechanism to constantly monitor the slightest chances of pollution. The sludge with gold residues, which accounts for 99%, is being sent to its (company’s) refinery in Mumbai for draining gold,” the statement said. The remaining one percent of the sludge, without gold residues, is procured and processed by Kerala Enviro Infrastructure Ltd.
The statement also said that they have secured all necessary clearance certificates from all the concerned departments. The statement denied allegations that they have surpassed the decisions taken at the meeting convened by EP Jayarajan.
“This allegation looks like a conspiracy by some vested interest groups. The company follows all the decisions taken in that meeting and works in accordance with the assurances given by the Malabar Group Chairman. That is why, Malabar Group did not set up the gold refining unit as planned before. Malabar Gold has refineries outside Kerala. A new one is under construction in Telangana. The company uses the latest technologies and equipment to avoid environmental pollution fully,” the statement said.