The Kerala government has given Hindustan Insecticides Ltd. (HIL) conditional clearance for continuing the manufacture of all products except Endosulfan, Health Minister Adoor Prakash said on Friday.
Mr. Prakash told journalists here that following the decision to ban the production of Endosulfan, the company's licence for making the pesticide was cancelled. At a meeting held here on Thursday, in the presence of Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Mr. Prakash, State Pollution Control Board officials, and representatives of the company management and trade unions, it was decided to repeal the closure notice issued by the Board.
The permission was given on the condition that the first phase of removal of solid waste generated through the manufacture of insecticides be completed within a week, and the remaining within the next seven months. The solid waste would be taken to Ambalamugal, treated, and fixed to prevent leaching.
The waste from one lagoon had been removed, and the removal from the next would be completed before the onset of the monsoon. The government would monitor the production process to ensure that the banned pesticide was not manufactured again, Mr. Prakash said.
