Malappuram: The Aditya Birla Group is returning to Mavoor after a decade and a half. This time the leading industrial house has lined up three eco-friendly projects, including two manufacturing parks on the 330 acres of land where stood a now defunct factory of Gwalior Rayons, since renamed Grasim Industries.
The group had to close down the pulp and fibre factory in 2001 after a sustained popular agitation against the pollution of the Chaliyar River. About 300 persons were estimated to have died of cancer and other diseases caused by the toxic effluents the factory discharged to the river.
The Birla Group submitted fresh proposals to set up businesses on the land after Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty urged the company to come up with a couple of projects that suit Kerala’s atmosphere and generate employment at large scale. The company executives assured Kerala government representatives in Mumbai that the projects would be completed in a time-bound manner.
Kinfra Managing Director G.C. Gopala Pillai and Kinfra Film and Video Park Managing Director K. Sudhakaran represented the Kerala government in the talks with the company in Mumbai.
The plan involves a general manufacturing and services part on 100 acres and a hi-tech manufacturing park on 50 acres. Both the zones will have manufacturing and industries that do not pollute the environment.
A Naipunya skill development park is planned on 75 acres to train the youth in the area of their choice. Another 100 acres will be utilised for infrastructure development and associated activities.
The Birla Group had bought 82 acres of land by the Chaliyar River in the 1950s while the Kerala government acquired and handed over the rest of the land for the company to set up a plant. The Gwalior Rayons started operations in 1963.
After the factory was closed down, the Kerala government wanted the group to return the land that was given for industrial purposes. The company, however, managed to obtain a court stay on the decision.
The government and the company had since been talking about setting up an eco-friendly business on the land. Earlier proposals from the company were rejected as impractical.