Gas leak: Visakhapatnam’s Bhopal moment waiting to happen
VISAKHAPATNAM: Thursday’s gas leak in LG Polymers reminded Vizagites of the HPCL fire on September 14, 1997 in which over 50 persons died. A blast occurred in oxygen pressure reducing station of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant on June 13, 2012, killing 19 persons. HPCL Visakh Refinery fire on August 23, 2013 claimed 29 lives. After a gap of almost seven years, yet another major industrial mishap occurred in LG Polymers at RR Venkatapuram. The gas leak left 11 dead and several hundreds sick.
Despite oft-repeated talk of safety audit, industrial accidents continue to happen in Visakhapatnam, which is dubbed the main industrial hub of Andhra Pradesh. The city also witnessed accidents in several pharma and chemical units at regular intervals, causing safety concerns. The gas leak in LG Polymers is the fourth biggest industrial mishap in the city, which made Vizagites recollect Bhopal gas tragedy in 1984. Despite repeated announcements by the government to make the third party auditing a must for all chemical and process plants, it is yet to become a reality, said a trade union leader.
On January 25, 2016, a major fire broke out in the warehouse of Deccan Fine Chemicals at Rajavaram under Payakaraopeta police station limits in the district due to electric short circuit. Though no casualties were reported, the mishap created panic among the people of four villages in the area. Though the managements of industries instal quality equipment to avert mishaps, they don’t maintain it on a regular basis, leading to accidents, said another trade union leader.
AITUC leader and CPI State joint secretary JV Satyanarayana Murthy expressed concern over frequent accidents in Pharma City. The managements hardly pay any attention to industrial safety and pollution control measures. “Most industrial accidents are occurring due to negligence by managements and lack of proper inspection by Inspector of Factories and officials of the Pollution Control Board,” he said, while accusing the government of diluting the Acts for industrial safety. The regulatory agencies do not have enough manpower to conduct inspection of industries and ensure strict implementation of the guidelines for industrial safety, he added.