Tata Motors is a subsidiary of the Tata Group and has become one of the largest manufacturers of commercial vehicles in the world – from Wikipedia:
Tata Motors was listed on the NYSE in 2004, and in 2005 it was ranked among the top 10 corporations in India with an annual revenue exceeding INR 320 billion. In 2004, it bought Daewoo’s truck manufacturing unit, now known as Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle, in South Korea. It also, acquired a 21% stake in Hispano Carrocera SA, giving it controlling rights in the company. Tata Motors launched the Tata Nano, noted for its Rs 100,000 price-tag, in January 2008.
In March 2008, it finalised a deal with Ford Motor Company to acquire their British Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) business, which also includes the Rover, Daimler and Lanchester brand names.
Tata’s launch of the low-cost Nano caused led to concerns over the pollution which would ensue from mass motorisation of India. To counter this Tata announced plans to produce an electric version of the Nano, named the E-Nano – whether that will come to market remains to be seen as the rumours about its production all seem to come from a single article in last year’s Auto Bild magazine.
More environmental controversy has arisen recently because Tata Group has decided to build what would be one of India’s largest ports at Dhamra less than 15 km from the turtle mass nesting beaches at Gahirmatha, and five kilometers from the Bhitarkanika National Park, India’s second largest mangrove forest and home to the saltwater crocodile.
Greenpeace India has been spearheading attempts to stop the development of the port and Greenpeace include a comprehensive backgrounder to the story of the port’s development to-date which includes what would appear to be a dirty tricks campaign by Tata against Greenpeace.
Greenpeace aren’t the only ones opposing the port’s development – the Orissa Traditional Fishworker’s Union, who represent the concerns and interests of over 100,000 fishermen, vocally and publicly opposed the construction of the port. The project has also invited criticism from over 200 national and international scientists, including over 30 experts of the IUCN’s marine turtle specialist group. And Global Response also has a campaign to stop the port construction.
The Greenpeace campaign with their Cheap car, Priceless turtle line is very effective though a little mis-directed seeing as it is parent company Tata Group, not Tata Motors which is involved in the project to develop the port.
Greenpeace has had a lot of success with online campaigns like this – witness the recent success of their campaign to get electronics giant Philips to take responsibility for the cost of recycling its own products.
It will be fascinating to watch how this plays out – will Tata simply ignore the opposition and steam ahead with their plans to build the giant port or will they take account of the environmental concerns and at the very least halt the construction to allow an independent Environment Impact Analysis take place. Frankly, I’m not hugely optimistic for the turtles.
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“It is sad that we first decide a villain and then find the proof to crucify them, when our concern could be about the turtles and people of Orissa and finding out ways so that both prosper.” – Cyber activist blogger’s viewpoint on Greenpeace and the turtles
Dhamra Port Project is not only concern about the Orissa’s economy or the society’s betterment but they are also concern about the environmental protection. A very nice video which you will definitely like to share with others
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXJ9x8_sEQQ
Light and lighting are crucial for any industrial project, both during construction and the operational phase. IUCN lighting experts and DPCL are also taking care of implementing lighting safeguards, which would also be turtle safe lighting and would be low pressure sodium vapor lights which have been proven by research to be the least disorienting to turtle hatchlings.
Source: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=296928&id=168851070709
Mr Ratan Tata Chairman of TATA Steel to Greenpeace activists: “I invite you for a discussion and a visit to the port site in Dhamra.”
Tata proved that Tata was always willing to have a best solution for country’s industrial & economical development and they were always ready for solutions.
http://steelguru.com/news/index/2009/08/29/MTA5MDgw/TATA_Steel_invites_Greenpeace_activists_for_talks_on_Dhamra_Port.html
http://www.indopia.in/India-usa-uk-news/latest-news/661058/Business/4/20/4
http://www.newkerala.com/nkfullnews-1-100917.html
Greenpeace, the professed global environment campaign organization, in an instance of unmatched brazenness, falsified the report prepared by North Orissa University on Biodiversity Assessment of Dhamra Estuary. As a result, a group of forty MPs wrote to the Ministry Of Environment and Forests to call on the bluff of Greenpeace. The Orissa Govt. therefore initiated action against Greenpeace proposing a ban on all its activities in the state.
However, after the 102nd Annual General Meeting of Tata Steel in Mumbai, Greenpeace unabashedly has started their tricks once again. This time it has managed to rope in Retd Admiral Ramdas and his wife Mrs. Lalita Ramdas on the issue of Dhamra port but as far as scientific reasoning goes, the issues raised are totally unfounded. We can just hope that the visit of the Ramdas’ to the site will help to stop meaningless agitations and clear the situation once and for all.
Tata Steel has always maintained a strong focus on environment sustainability and environment management in all its operations. We have seen that in the issues regarding the construction of a deep-sea port at Dhamra in Orissa, the Company has been forthcoming in sharing the concerns of activists and ever willing to implement practical means of mitigating any adverse impact of port construction on the marine eco-system in that area. The Company has held at least eight to nine sessions of meetings with Greenpeace and other environmental organizations in the matter of Dhamra Port. Tata Steel has made it abundantly clear that it is willing to have further discussions in order to alleviate any unnecessary doubts that the dissenters may yet nurture against the project.
Here is an outline of events as they happened till date.
The JV agreement with L&T to build a port at Dhamra was signed by Tata Steel in 2004. At the very onset, discussions were initiated with WWF- India, BNHS, Mr Kartik Shankar, Mr Bittu Sehagal and others.
The company was duly concerned with the objections raised by different environmental organizations and agreed not to begin construction work till a detailed study was complete. Responding wholeheartedly to the demands of activists, Tata Steel agreed for a proposal for a further study of the impact of the port on turtles and on the marine and island eco-system.
In 2005, BNHS and WWF-India, with an unprecedented suddenness, reversed their stand and refused to conduct the assessment study as they had promised. However, the organisations did not provide any reasons for their turncoat attitude.
In March 06, in an address to ED, Greenpeace India, the Chairman of TATA Sons made it clear that commitments were meant to be honoured at both ends. The Company had fulfilled their promise by withholding construction work for the proposed study, which never actually took off. The MD of Tata Steel also met Greenpeace officials in their Bangalore office.
In January 2008 a meeting was subsequently conducted between Greenpeace and Tata Steel and a list of concerns was presented by Greenpeace with regard to Dhamra Port. DPCL on 8th March 2008, gave a detailed and comprehensive explanation to all the points raised by Greenpeace. Subsequent objections were allayed on 3rd May 2008.
Further on 23rd October 2008, MD, Tata Steel along with senior executives of Tata Steel, L&T and DPCL met Greenpeace, BNHS, WPSI, Wild Society of Orissa, Sanctuary Asia and other environmental organizations to discuss the concerns and the way forward on the subject with regard to Dhamra Port.
A team of Company Executives and environment experts visited Bhitarakanika National Park, Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary and the Dhamra Port site on February 2009, supervising the ongoing dredging operations.
On fourth meeting on 20th Feb 2009 in Kolkata, Tata Steel, L&T and DPCL agreed to conduct the additional biological impact assessment in close collaboration with NGOs’ of environmental organizations team led by a mutually agreed upon Scientists team. However the NGOs’ in a further instance of unreasonableness, insisted upon complete cessation of on-going dredging operation of Dhamra Port even before the commencement of study. However DPCL, Tata Steel and L&T team showed it preparedness to adjust the schedule of works including dredging to facilitate the study after due recommendation by the Scientists team.
The 102nd AGM of Tata Steel had been attended by a number of Greenpeace activists who happen to be shareholders of the Company as well. The AGM highlighted Tata Steel’s interests in further conference with Greenpeace in the matter of the port in addition to an invitation to activists to visit the port site yet again.
From the sequence of events, it is absolutely clear that the only thing that Greenpeace wants is to prolong the situation of deadlock in the matter of Dhamra Port. Perhaps, due to a lack of other valid issues on their agenda, Greenpeace is carrying on with a stance of stiffness, lest they have to give in to valid scientific reasoning. The only deduction that may be drawn from Greenpeace’s lack of willingness in discussion is that they have lost their own conviction long before and fear that they will have to admit it as such in an open forum. It is indeed a very sorry state of affairs in which progress is kept at stake and the environment is being used as a pawn by people who profess themselves to be friends of the environment.
Some shareholders of Tata Steel brought up the concerns raised by Greenpeace about the impact of the Dhamra Port on the nesting habitat of Olive Ridley Turtles at Tata Steel’s 102nd AGM in Mumbai on the 27th August’09 and requested the Chairman of Tata Steel, Mr Ratan Tata, to discuss the Dhamra Port issue with them.
Mr Tata responded immediately to their concerns and said that my invitation is “ to you Admiral Ramdas†and anybody else who would be interested and Mr Muthuraman would make the arrangements for you all to take the time to satisfy yourselves in terms of what we are doing.
Know more: http://www.eco-dhamra.com/environment/olive-ridely-turtle/response-to-greenpeace-activity-on-websites.asp