India Passes Bill to Sue Coca Cola

    India’s southern state of Kerala has passed a law allowing people to seek compensation(补偿) from U.S. soft drink company Coca Cola for alleged¹ damages caused by a bottling plant. The company’s Indian subsidiary has expressed disappointment at the legislation and denied that its plant caused any damage.
    Indian state legislators（立法者） passed the bill after a high level panel established by the Kerala state government concluded that production at Coca Cola’s bottling plant had resulted in environmental and soil degradation², and water contamination.
    The state government says that the plant at Plachimada village in Palakkad district extracted excessive（过度的） amounts of ground water, leading to water shortages in the area. It says sludge disposed from the plant contained cadmium, lead and other substances that affected³ crops and the health of local people.
    The factory was shut down in 2005 following protests by activists⁴ and local citizens.
    A three-member tribunal will now be empowered to process claims from people who claim to have been adversely⁵ affected by the plant.
    In a statement, Coca Cola’s Indian subsidiary, Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages⁶, says the panel's study is devoid⁷ of facts, scientific data or any inputs⁸ from company representatives. It says Coca Cola was not given an opportunity to share independent data before the bill was introduced.
    Amit Srivastav, is director of the non-government group, India Resource Center, which campaigned against the Coca Cola plant in Kerala. He says the damage caused by the plant has been well documented.
    "There have been number after number of government studies, independent observer organization studies, that have actually confirmed that Coca Cola company is responsible for the water depletion⁹ and pollution in the area," Srivastav said.
    Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages strongly denies the allegations, and says its operations did not cause any damage. It says it is reviewing its options, but is willing to talk to all stakeholders on the issue.
    A committee established by the state government had estimated the cost of the damage allegedly caused by the plant at around $48 million.
    This is not the first time Coca Cola has been mired¹⁰ in controversy¹¹ in the state. In 2006, the Kerala state government had banned the production and sale of Coke and Pepsi beverages in the state, but the order was overturned by the High Court.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）

1 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

2 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 adversely   

ad.有害地

参考例句：

• We commented adversely upon the imbecility of that message of telegraphic style. 我们对着这条电报式的愚蠢的留言发泄了一通不满。
• Widely fluctuating exchange rates may adversely affect international trade. 浮动幅度很大的汇率可能会对国际贸易产生有害的影响。

6 beverages   

n.饮料( beverage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• laws governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 控制酒类销售的法规
• regulations governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 含酒精饮料的销售管理条例

7 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

8 inputs   

n.输入( input的名词复数 )；投入；输入端；输入的数据v.把…输入电脑( input的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Uncheck the inputs checked for optimization in the previous stage. 不测试那些已经测试过的优化了的以前步骤的inputs.（变量参数）。 来自互联网
• Just in case, save in a file the inputs obtained at the previous stage. 以防万一，保存以前步骤获得的inputs（变量参数值）到一个文件中去。 来自互联网

9 depletion   

n.耗尽，枯竭

参考例句：

• Increased consumption of water has led to rapid depletion of groundwater reserves.用水量的增加导致了地下水贮备迅速枯竭。
• Farmers should rotate crops every season to prevent depletion of the soil.农夫每季应该要轮耕，以免耗尽土壤。

10 mired   

abbr.microreciprocal degree 迈尔德（色温单位）v.深陷( mire的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The country was mired in recession. 这个国家陷入了经济衰退的困境。
• The most brilliant leadership can be mired in detail. 最有才干的领导也会陷于拘泥琐事的困境中。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。