Kozhikode Fresh Cut pollution row: Kerala High Court extends stay on closure; locals plan fresh agitation

Kozhikode: The Kerala High Court on Thursday extended the stay on the closure notice issued to poultry-waste processing company Fresh Cut Organics Pvt Ltd at Ambayathode in Thamarassery. The company can continue its operations until August 20, when the court will consider the petitions concerning the functioning of the facility.

However, the local action council has warned that it would resume and intensify its protest if the company restarted operations at the existing site.

The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) had issued a closure notice to the company following complaints from local residents that waste from the facility had entered the river during the recent floods. The High Court subsequently stayed the closure order, observing that the KSPCB had issued the notice without conducting an inspection of the facility.

Following the court's earlier order, the local action council launched a protest and blocked the entrance to the company last week. The agitation was later called off after a consensus was reached at a meeting that the company would not resume operations until the court delivered its final decision on the complaint concerning the facility.

On Thursday, the court directed the company to comply with all applicable rules while operating and to transport poultry waste only in refrigerated vehicles.

Meanwhile, the local action council said it would resume its protest in the wake of the High Court's decision to extend the stay. “We will not allow the company to operate on the existing land. We will intensify our protest if the company resumes operations,” said Babu Kudukkil, chairman of the level action council.

The High Court also allowed a petition filed by the action council seeking to implead itself in the petition filed by the company challenging the closure notice. There were reports that the company management had already initiated preliminary steps to relocate the facility to a new site following the protests. The state government had also extended support for shifting the company to a new location.

Local residents have been protesting against the plant for more than seven years. In October 2025, tensions escalated when residents blocked a lorry carrying poultry waste to the facility. Police intervened, leading to clashes, and the plant was set on fire.

Although the Kattippara Grama Panchayat had earlier cancelled the company's licence, the facility subsequently obtained approval from higher authorities. Concerns over waste management intensified further after heavy rains in the region two weeks ago caused the river to overflow.