CHENNAI: In a controversial move, the Directorate General of Shipping and Mercantile Marine Department (MMD), Chennai, has reportedly issued no-objection certificate to the British vessel, BW Maple, one of the two ships that collided off the Ennore coast on January 28 this year leading to a devastating oil leak, to sail away though the investigation into the incident is still underway. According to the documents accessed by the Express, insurers of BW Maple have offered to submit bank guarantee to allow the ship to sail away and carry out its usual businesses.
On September 14, Captain Anish Joseph, Nautical Surveyor-cum-DDG (Technical) of DG Shipping wrote to the Principal Officer of MMD, Chennai, expressing the Directorate’s no objection to the sailing of BW Maple from the Kamarajar Port. A day after, that is, on September 15, Ravikumar Moka, Ship Surveyor-cum-DDG (Technical) of MMD, Chennai, also cleared the deck for Maple, and wrote to Kamarajar Port that the department has no objection. Copies of the NOCs were sent to the chief secretary, Director of Fisheries, Customs and other departmental heads concerned.
The collision happened at around 3.45 am on January 28 when the outbound vessel BW Maple, carrying highly inflammable LPG, rammed into inbound MT Dawn Kancheepuram that was loaded with 26,806 tonnes of motor spirit and 6,008 tonnes of high-speed diesel. What happened next was a well-documented environmental disaster, whose effects were felt up to 100 km from the collision site.
Activist Vaishnavi Jayakumar, who had raised the environmental concerns before the National Green Tribunal, questioned the prerogative of DG Shipping in issuing the no-objection certificate before submitting final report. “DG Sipping hasn’t submitted its probe report and the Minjur police are also carrying out criminal investigation, which is also yet to be completed. In fact, it is BW Maple that rammed into other vessel resulting in leakage of about 196 tonnes of heavy furnace oil. So, how can the maple be allowed to sail away,” she questioned.
Meanwhile, Minjur police told Express that ideally the vessel should not be allowed to sail away until the investigations are over. “We got a request from the insurers of the BW Maple for no objection certificate and the office of Superintendent of Police is examining the request,” the official said. The official also said that the police investigation report would be filed in another 10 days.
“We have the complete recording of Simplified Voyage Data Recorder (S-VDR), a critical evidence to confirm the voice communication, besides an array of related data to get to the root cause of the incident. Shortly, we will decide on who all should be included as accused,” he said. To a query, he said since there was no life loss, the charges framed are all bailable.
It is also reliably learnt that the two masters of the ships have been signed off with condition that they will be available during the course of investigations. Currently, Maple is anchored in the sea near the port and Dawn is anchored at Marine Liquid Terminal Jetty of Ennore tank terminal.
MoEF downplays quantum of oil leak
Though the initial estimates of DG Shipping on quantum of oil leak was pegged at 196 tonnes, the latest report submitted by the Union Environment Ministry before the southern bench of the tribunal on Wednesday claims that only 75 tonnes had been leaked.
“The quantity of spilled oil could not be assessed. As per the statement of the captain and marine engineer of the ship, only furnace oil was leaked and that too about 75 tonnes. The same is being assessed by DG Shipping,” the report says. The ministry also referred to the incident as minor, but acknowledged the fact that the environment damage was severe in magnitude, which cannot be assessed at this juncture.