Let us see the dispute over water use between the Perumatty Grama Panchayat in Kerala and the Coca Cola Company.

Question

Read the para and answer the following questions. 

Let us see the dispute over water use between the Perumatty Grama Panchayat in Kerala and the Coca Cola Company. The Panchayat decided not to renew the license for extraction of water because of the lowering of the water table in neighbouring areas. There was also decreasing water quality to the extent that the local government primary health centre had concluded that the water was not fit for drinking. The issue was brought to the courts and is now pending in the Supreme Court as on January 2014. The two decisions given by the judges in Kerala gave two opposing views of groundwater regulation. The first judge found that groundwater is a public resource meant for all, and that the state has a duty to protect it against excessive exploitation. Additionally the judge made the link that drinking water is a priority. The second judge took a completely different perspective and asserted the primacy of landowners’ control over groundwater. 

These two contradictory decisions illustrate the confusion over our laws today.

Answer 1

1. The para is an example of the confusion over our laws today. 

2. The Coca Cola company was extracting more and more underground water.

3. This was reducing the groundwater levels and the water is getting polluted. 

4. The issue was brought to the court. 

5. Two judges gave contradicting judgments. 

6. The first judge stated that the state has a duty to protect it against excessive 

7. The second judge insisted the primacy of landowners’ control over groundwater. 

8. Hence we can conclude that there should be some clarity regarding the laws relating to ground-water. 

9. The laws are outdated and inappropriate. 

10. There should not be any contradiction regarding public interest.