JSP leader expresses concern over sea pollution by industrial waste

Expressing concern over what he called ‘environmental destruction and illegal land acquisitions’ across North Andhra region, Jal Biradari national convener and Jana Sena Party (JSP) State general secretary (environment) Bolisetty Satyanarayana has accused the authorities concerned of allowing pollution of seawater by industries and not taking any remedial action.

With India becoming a signatory to the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) treaty, the coastal pollution falls under the international legal frameworks.

Citing the example of the release of untreated sewage water into the sea at Lawson’s Bay in Visakhapatnam, Mr. Satyanarayana said that he had been fighting over the issue for the past 10 years.

“Though the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) had acknowledged the issue, no action has been taken so far to prevent it,” he said.

He blamed the lack of permanent staff in the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) for the failure to check the growing pollution in the city.

“Hundred million litres of pharmaceutical and industrial wastes are being dumped into the sea daily. The seabed is unable to absorb the pollution,” he said and appealed to the court to dispose off the case early.

Mr. Satyanarayana demanded immediate action for protection of the Mudasarlova Reservoir. He alleged that of the 836 acres of the reservoir, constructed in 1901, only 286 acres remain protected now, with the remaining land subjected to encroachments.

The dumpyard upstream Mudasarlova reservoir should be shifted to prevent contamination of drinking water. JSP president and Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan promised this.

Opposing the expansion plans of the GVMC, he said that the plan violated the existing guidelines. He also opposed the illegal blasting within 100 metres of residential areas at Payakaraopeta, alleging that it was being allowed in violation of the rules to benefit the contractors.

He demanded an impartial inquiry into the illegal land acquisition for the Jindal Project at S. Kota, and the allocation of 1,085 acres of fertile lands for super smelters in Gurla mandal in Vizianagaram. He demanded the release of ₹100 crore, collected as library cess by the GVMC, to the Visakhapatnam Central Library.

Refuting the allegations on him by the former DGP AB Venkateswara Rao that he (Mr. Satyanarayana) had filed a case on Amaravati at the behest of the YSRCP, he challenged the former DGP for an open debate. He said that he only wanted preservation of fertile lands and the environment, and was not opposed to Amaravati as the capital.