14th October 2019, Thoothukudi: Sterlite Copper stepped forward to help improve groundwater level and enhance environment and hygiene by cleaning water channels and ponds in the villages of Saminatham, Rajavin Kovil, Naduvakurichi, Sundar Lingan Colony and Nainarpuram in the district of Thoothukudi.
The water channel cleaning project was initiated as per the requirements and the requests received from the villagers. It was successfully executed and completed with the support of Mr. S Murugan, ex Panchayat president, Saminatham and the villagers.
An estimated INR 30 Lakhs was spent on facilitating the cleaning activities, and is now positively impacting more than 2000 families from the aforementioned villages. The water saved is used by the villagers for domestic purposes which include irrigation, washing, cleaning etc. It is also used to support the growth of agricultural crops like Chilli, Cotton and different kinds of pulses.
The land covering an area of more than 8 acres in the aforementioned villages, was filled with unhygienic and stagnated water that would often overflow into the nearby villages during heavy rains and monsoons. This disrupted the day to day activities of the villagers, and generated germ-infested surroundings. The villagers also had no access to the water for any domestic purposes.
At other times, the same land would be overgrown with wild shrubs, flowers and plants.
However, after the channel has been cleaned, the same land has been converted in the form of channels, ponds and dug out ponds with a height of more than 7 feet of water holding capacity.
The success of the project which was widely appreciated by the villagers, has inspired corporates in and around the SIPCOT complex area in Thoothukudi to sponsor similar projects and activities.
Speaking on this initiative, Mr. S Murugan, the Ex Panchayat President, Saminatham village shared “Earlier, around 4 to 5 kilometres of land would be filled with dry grass and shrubs. It was narrow and the water stagnation disrupted our way of life. However, after the channel cleaning, people are more eager to come out and use the conserved water for several domestic and agricultural purposes. With the success of this project, several organisations have come forward to sponsor more such initiatives. As our next venture, we look forward to constructing bathing water tanks. ”
Ms. Karpakam, a resident of Saminatham village said “Earlier the water wouldn’t stay. The narrow routes would saturate the water fast and would dry the channels. However, with the deepening and widening of the water channels, the water is flowing freely and it is conserved in the right manner.”
In the coming weeks, Sterlite Copper aims to cover more villages of Thoothukudi under this initiative.
As part of Sterlite Copper’s ongoing community related activities aiming at positively impacting the lives of Thoothukudi’s people, multiple initiatives in the areas of Education, Health, Clean Drinking Water, Tree Plantation, Youth Skill Development and Women Empowerment are being carried out.
Vedanta Limited, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Limited, is one of the world’s leading diversified natural resource companies with business operations in India, South Africa, Namibia, and Australia. Vedanta is a leading producer of Oil & Gas, Zinc, Lead, Silver, Copper, Iron Ore, Steel, Aluminium & Power.
Governance and Sustainable Development are at the core of Vedanta’s strategy, with a strong focus on health, safety, and environment and on enhancing the lives of local communities. The company is conferred with, CII-ITC Sustainability Award, FICCI CSR Award, Dun & Bradstreet Awards in Metals & Mining & The Great Place to Work.
For two decades, Vedanta has been contributing to India’s growth story. The company is amongst the top private sector contributors to the exchequer with the highest ever contribution of INR 42, 560 Crore in FY 2019. Vedanta’s operations contribute 1% to India’s GDP.
Vedanta Limited is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange in India and has ADRs listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
For more information please visit www.vedantalimited.com
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” – that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “should” or “will.” Forward–looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from the behaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange, fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different that those expressed in our forward looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.