Inquiry commences to fix responsibility for oil spill

An enquiry is under way, a top official of the Kamarajar Port Limited (KPL) confirmed to DTNext. Confirming this, a senior official from the Minjur Police said, “The complaint has been filed by Arun Kumar Gupta, General Manager (Marine) to investigate the accident and find out who is responsible, as it has resulted in environmental damage. This will be followed by legal action. Since the ships are under the control of the Port, we must follow due protocol, which will take time.” 

This comes a day after KPL ordered an enquiry by Capt Subhash Kumar, a marine expert. A probe into the incident ordered by Directorate General of Shipping, Mumbai, has already commenced. P Raveendran, Chennai Port Trust Chairman, said scientists from Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Faridabad, had landed here on February 2 to dispose of the sludge. 

“The collected sludge and water mix will be moved to Ennore, where there is a designated pit for bioremediation. Oilivorous, a product with a blend of microbes, will be used to convert the material into sand in three weeks, using the biodegradable bacteria,” added the official. 

Coast Guard Region (East) Inspector General Rajan Bargotra said, “While the other beaches like Marina, Elliot’s beach and Tiruvanmiyur beach, impacted by the oil spill would be cleared of tar balls in a day or two, cleaning up in Ramakrishna Nagar Kuppam Beach will take time. Cleaning up the rocks will take at least 10-12 days,” he said. 

The Coast Guard chief said, “The collision was a major accident but a minor spill – be it two tonnes or 20 tonnes. This won’t impact the environment in a big way,” he concluded.