In what seems to be an attempt to cover up an oil spill on Mundra coast on June 17, failed as the spillage news spread everywhere.
In what seems to be an attempt to cover up an oil spill on Mundra coast on June 17, failed as the spillage news spread everywhere on Tuesday morning.
On June 17, high speed diesel (HSD) had spilled while being unloaded from the ship, Jag Anchal, in the trench area of the port. The HSD belonging to Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) had been carried in the ship chartered from Great Eastern Shipping Company.
While it was estimated that HSD anywhere between one lakh liters and ten lakh liters valued at around Rs4.4 crore spilled, officials of Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) said they were yet to determine the exact extent of the spillage.
“We are gathering the details about the incident. The diesel spill was not visible in the sea. Our teams have reached the site and are collecting samples to determine if the spillage caused any pollution,” GPCB member-secretary Hardik Shah said.
He added that since the oil was not visible in the sea, it indicated that either the spill was minor or the cleaning operations were undertaken in the area by HPCL or port authorities.
The ship had arrived at Mundra port on June 16 and returned on June 20. Principal secretary (environment and forests) SK Nanda told reporters that he had directed the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) and the GPCB to monitor the situation.
Though the oil spill actually happened five days ago, government agencies were completely unaware about it. Even on Tuesday, aggressive attempts by government as well as corporate houses were being made to undermine the incident with officials insisting that the spill was “a regular incident and very minor”.
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