CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has directed the central and State governments to file their responses to a petition seeking the sealing of the ammonia fertilizer plant operated by Coromandel International Limited (CIL) in Ennore.
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The petition pertains to an incident on December 26, 2023, when an undersea pipeline that transports liquid ammonia from the port to the Coromandel fertilizer plant at Ennore was damaged.
This resulted in an ammonia gas leak, following which more than 52 people were admitted to hospitals after suffering various complications, including breathing difficulty.
The government later ordered the payment of compensation amounting to Rs 5.92 crore for the damage caused by the incident.
Comparing the ammonia gas leak to the Bhopal gas tragedy, former Tiruvottiyur MLA K Kuppan filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) before the Madras High Court seeking directions to seal the ammonia fertilizer plant responsible for the hazardous leak.
In his petition, he also sought directions to halt ammonia transfer, storage, and other related hazardous operations at the plant, and to instruct the District Collectors of Chennai and Tiruvallur to immediately provide full compensation to those affected by the ammonia gas leak in 2023.
When the matter came up for hearing before it, a division bench comprising Chief Justice MM Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan directed the State and central governments to file their counter to the petition and adjourned the case for further hearing.