Uttar Pradesh's 18 village councils demand local Coca-Cola plant to stop extracting underground water which is leading to water scarcity in the area, according to Thomson Reuters report.

Reportedly, the villages which are located in Mehdiganj area of Varanasi claim that they have been facing water scarcity issues since 1999 when the plant has started operating.

"Elected village council heads represent the voice of the people, and they are clear that Coca-Cola is not welcome in Mehdiganj. It is time for Coca-Cola to pack up and leave," said Amit Srivastava of the California-based India Resource Center, which is supporting the village councils, according to Thomson Reuters.

To meet its production needs, the Coca-Cola plant uses the same groundwater source on which the villagers of Mehdiganj rely on to meet most of their needs which include drinking, washing, irrigation and for livestock.

"The company Coca-Cola paints a pretty picture of itself internationally as a responsible user of water, but the reality in India is that it exploits groundwater at the expense of the poor, the women, children, farmers and livestock who have to live with less water because Coca-Cola mines groundwater in a water scarce area for profit," Srivastava said.

The 18 village councils have written to State Pollution Control Board which granted the licence to the plant. They have urged the authorities to prohibit the company from extracting any more groundwater in the area.