North Chennai residents seek indefinite ban on new factories

CHENNAI: Demanding indefinite moratorium on setting up new industries or expansion of existing industrial activities in the Ennore-Manali-Pulicat region, members of Chennai Climate Action Group, a city-based youth collective, on Saturday said,

“The pollution control board may direct children to limit bursting of crackers keeping air pollution in mind, but for us it is daily Deepavali.” A study titled ‘Poison in the Air’ conducted by Chennai Climate Action Group, a city-based youth collective, claims that for 59 per cent of 2019, the six major polluting industries in Ennore-Manali region operated in violation of the emission norms.

The study analysed over 18 lakh hours of stack emission data of six major industries. Addressing a press conference, 17-year-old J Janani and G Santosh from Manali stressed on the continuing pollution. “As if pollution from the existing industries was not enough, the government is planning to set up more,” Janani said.