Prayagraj, April 16 (HS): Allahabad MP Ujjwal Raman Singh, while visiting various areas

of Chaka block, received a complaint that excessive groundwater extraction by

the Varun Beverages Limited (Pepsi) plant in Saraswati Hi-Tech City, Naini, has

caused the water table in the area to drop to dangerous levels, exacerbating

the drinking water crisis. Villagers reported that as the Pepsi plant's

capacity has increased, the rate of water extraction from borewells has also

increased. This has directly impacted the hand pumps and wells in the

surrounding villages. Villagers say, Most of the hand pumps in the area

have stopped working even before the summer has begun. The water table has

dropped so low that it is no longer economically feasible for the common man to

drill new borewells.

MP Ujjwal Raman Singh assured

the villagers that your fight will be fought from the streets to the

Parliament, when only one Pepsi plant is operational now; the situation will

become more dreadful once the Bisleri water plant being built next to it

becomes operational and Chaka block anyway falls in the dangerous dark zone. He

said that along with the water crisis, instead of giving employment to the local

youth in the plant, jobs are being given to outsiders whereas when this unit

was established, it was promised to give employment to the local people on

priority basis. But the reality is that the company management is recruiting

outsiders, while the qualified youth living right next to the boundary wall of

the plant are wandering from door to door.

MP representative Vinay

Kushwaha said, We are facing pollution and water shortages due to the

plant, but when it comes to jobs, we are ignored. We demand that at least 70%

of local youth be employed. If concrete measures for groundwater recharge are

not taken soon and local youth are not hired, a public fight will be waged from

the streets to Parliament, and a protest will soon be held at the factory gate.”

MP Ujjwal Raman Singh said, The plant management must

understand that the residents have the first right over the natural resource

(water) they are using. We are not against development, but this development

should not come at the cost of our destruction.

Meanwhile,

massive protest and demonstration scheduled for April 16th at PepsiCo India

Holdings Pvt. Ltd.'s Naini Saraswati Hi-Tech City plant has been postponed due

to the Noida workers' agitation, as the administration has refused permission

for the protest and is currently negotiating with company officials. Disclosing

this information, MP representative Vinay Kushwaha stated that the most prominent

issue raised by former MP Kunwar Revati Raman Singh is the lack of employment

for unemployed youth in the area. The letter alleges that PepsiCo and its

vendor companies are prioritizing outsiders over locals, causing widespread

dissatisfaction among the local population. He added that the issue of

excessive groundwater exploitation by the company has also been highlighted.

Kunwar Revati Raman Singh stated that the plant's groundwater extraction has

significantly lowered the water level in the surrounding rural areas, causing

hand pumps and wells to dry up.

This

demonstration was originally scheduled for Thursday, at 12:00 noon. However,

due to the ongoing farmers' and workers' protests in the Noida Sector, this

schedule has been revised at the request of the police administration. The

former MP clarified that the fight for the rights of the local people and

protection of the environment will continue. “If the company officials do not

give priority to the local people in jobs and do not take any concrete action

on groundwater recharge, then the administration and the local people will be

informed as soon as the new date of demonstration is fixed. He has warned that

if the company does not take appropriate steps regarding providing employment

to the local people and water level, then a fierce agitation will be carried

out in the coming time. Local youth not getting employment and falling

groundwater level are becoming a huge bone of contention,” he added. GM Prenna

Kapoor, HR Head Arun Satpathy and MP representative Vinay Kushwaha were present

on behalf of PepsiCo in the talks.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi