Will block Syngenta deal, at any cost: Corlim locals

Team Herald

PANJIM: ‘Come what may, we will not allow the transfer of Syngenta land to Deccan Fine Chemicals’ was the resolution taken by the villagers of Corlim.

Following reports of Syngenta getting go-ahead to sell Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) to sell its manufacturing facility in Goa to Deccan Fine Chemicals, the villagers had planned a major agitation and accordingly a meeting was convened at the main gate of Syngenta.

The public meeting decided to appoint a co-ordination committee to take the issue forward. 

Addressing a gathering of nearly thousand villagers, local legislator Pandurang Madkaikar came down heavily on Industries Minister Mahadev Naik, who reportedly made statement that the government cannot intervene in the issue.

“Is he the Industries minister of State of Goa or the Minister for Industrial Estates?” he asked.

Madkaikar as well as the sarpanch and other activists, argued that the original sale deed prevented Syngenta from selling the land, known as Santa Monica, to a third party without giving the original vendor, in this case the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman and the government, the first right to purchase the land.

"The indenture also says that the land cannot be transferred to anybody other than the original purchaser or a subsidiary,” said Madkaikar.

The main grouse of the locals is the health and safety risk posed by chemical companies in the vicinity as any blast or chemical leakage will affect citizens in a 20-kilometre radius.

"They said property can instead be used to build an IIT or a college or for some other much needed infrastructure. The Corlim villagers will not oppose it," he said. 

“Come what may, we will not allow the company to sell the land. As we feel this is nothing but a land scam,” Madkaikar said.

“It is 7.5 sq mts of prime land in Goa and who knows the Deccan chemicals owners may start real estate business,” he said.

Activists expressed doubts over Deccan Fine Chemical's ability to prevent toxic or hazardous chemicals from leaking, especially since a reactor had exploded at the Visakhapatnam plant in 2014 killing two people and injuring several others.

Baptist Pereira of Corlim Civic Forum also criticised the government attitude towards the issue.

“The land was sold by the Archdiocese of Goa to the President of India at the rate of 70 paise per Sq mt and the President of India in return sold it to Ciba @ 25 paise per sq metre,” he said.

Further, Baptist said that Syngenta is now trying to sell the company 3400 million sq mts.

“The government of Goa must intervene and buy back the land as we the villagers do not want the hazardous chemical factories in our villagers,” he said.

He also pointed out when Syngenta started operations, there were hardly 5,000 to 10,000 people here but now the population is around 35,000 and as such, the permission cannot be allowed.

Meanwhile as per the Syngenta deal, the facility of SIL at Goa, including its assets, licences and permits, assumed liabilities and employees will be transferred to Deccan Fine Chemicals on a going concern basis, as per the details.

Deccan Fine Chemicals is engaged in the manufacture of chemical-based active ingredients and intermediates for agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicines and speciality chemicals.

The Indian unit of Switzerland-headquartered Syngenta AG is in the business of agrochemicals and seeds processing.

Under agrochemical business, it manufactures and formulates crop protection chemicals, which are categorised as insecticides, fungicides, herbicides and plant growth regulators