Jharsuguda Hockey Cup 2011- A small step to uphold the National Game...

           Hockey is our National game. We had been the unparalleled emperor of the game. In Olympics we won the gold medal consecutively from 1928 to 1956. We defeated USA in Los Angeles Olympics with a record margin of 24-1. But where has the gory gone?

           

        We all aware of the fact that Orissa has been producing many world class Hockey players. Many of them have been from Sundargarh district, near to Jharsuguda. Still the craze and the passion that should be there for a national game are yet to be seen in this locality. It can easily be seen, there are many companies, but surprisingly none of them have tried their bit to encourage the game. I must appreciate Vedanta for pioneering a step towards this and organizing a two day- “Jharsuguda Hockey Cup” tournament in Jharsuguda.

 Augmenting its endeavour, Vedanta sponsored the Jharsuguda Cup Hockey Tournament 2011. The tournament was held from 12th February to 13th February 2011 here at the Ghanashyama Hemalata Vidyamandir Playground. Six renowned Hockey teams from different parts of Orissa participated in the tournament which was organized by the local Debadihi club in association with Dilip Tirkey Sports & Research Foundation, Orissa.

            Players from across the state participated and took the game to a different level. Along with Vedanta COO Mr. Abhijit Pati, Padmashree Dilip Tirky (Former Captain of the National Hockey Team) also graced the inauguration ceremony on 12^th February to encourage the players. Frankly speaking, it was really a proud moment for me to watch Mr. Dilip Tirky so lively. People of Jharsuguda and the sports lovers appreciated Vedanta for its effort to uphold the national game in the locality.

            We do have budding talents in every corner of the India, especially in Orissa. But they need to be groomed to take on the world again. Yes, we have the potential to show our prominence again in the game. The future of Indian hockey is bright if we prepare ourselves to see it as bright.  I would request Vedanta to organize such Hockey tournaments in the future to support our local talents.

Industrialisation in Jharsuguda and Pollution...

It’s an eminent fact that since the advent of industrial and technological revolutions, economic indicators have been considered as the principal criteria for measuring progress. The industrial and technological progress however, carries with it the germs of negative environmental impact, abetted by both pollution and degradation. Jharsuguda is also no way out of this. We all unanimously agree that Jharsuguda is a much familiar word worldwide only due to its rapid development for industrialisation within a short instance. Since last decade, Jharsuguda has witnessed many small and large scale industries developing in it. Certainly, it would also have felt a raising level of pollution for this. The industries in Jharsuguda how much give precedence to these environmental norms is the concerned topic.

From last few days, I have been going through many local newspapers where I came to know regarding the official visit of Hon’ble House Committee on Environment to sambalpur, Jharsuguda and Sundargarh. The panel led by Debasis Samantary, comprising Arun Sahu and Nabin Narayan Nanda paid the visit to Jharsuguda on 03^rd Feb. The Committee along with JSG MLA Mr. Naba Kishore Das, Rengali MLA and senior Govt. Officials visited various industries in the region. There they reviewed steps taken by the industrial units to contain pollution and protect environment as per norms

While the panel gave a “Go ahead” green signal to Vedanta and Bhusan for their effective measures taken to contain pollution, on the contrary, they took a strong note on few erring industries for violating the norms of pollution control & environment protection act.

Containing emission and pollution level within the permissible limit by the advanced equipments and techniques can easily be accessible and affordable by the large industries. Whereas for small scale industries, it can be a major cause that enhances their Cost of Production (COP). Thus instead of concerning these issues, they have been trying to increase their profit leeway. Being a huge green field project, for Vedanta, these environmental friendly techniques certainly cannot be a big reason which can affect its COP at a large. I think, above all, ‘zeal’ to do something good for the environs around the plant must be there.

“Go ahead” signal by the Hon’ble House committee on environment to Vedanta will definitely indicates the fact that Vedanta (Talking about Jharsuguda) is very much concerned about its environmental aspect. It is a good sign for the people of Jharsuguda where they can enjoy a standard life residing in it. In spite of this, I must tell you that other industries in the region should also gear up to protect the environment with containing the pollution level.