CHENNAI: After the activists, it is now the turn of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) to put pressure on Unilever for the pollution caused by its now-shut thermometer factory in Kodaikanal. Following the decision taken during its recent meeting on May 28, the Scientific Experts Committee (SEC) formed by the Supreme Court Monitoring Committee had directed the company to submit a detailed project report (DPR) for remediation and containment within a month. But the company is yet to provide the required report. This prompted TNPCB to ask the firm to explain the delay. The DPR will be examined in consultation with local area committee for futher action and the board will then explore the need for examining the lingering effects of mercury in the environment through a detailed study, said a statement from the board chairman. Even as they commended the board for opening up the process to public consultation through the local area committee, activists insisted that the TNPCB itself should take up the study. “We do not trust Unilever anymore,” said Nityanand Jayaraman, Chennai Solidarity Group, an activist group which has been campaigning on this issue. “If the TNPCB undertakes the study, it would be in line with the directions of the Supreme Court Monitoring Committee and the local area environment committee,” he added. G Sundarrajan of Poovulagin Nanbargal echoed the view saying “The TNPCB should conduct the assessment and DPR and recover the money from Unilever. This would help end the problem.” Unilever’s woes began in 2001 when residents of Kodaikanal spotted mercury contaminated scraps disposed of haphazardly. Following this, the board conducted an inquiry and ordered the unit to be shut.