CUTTACK: Nearly five months after chlorine gas leak on the premises of SCB Medical College and Hospital (SCBMCH), no action has been initiated by the State Government even as a special probe was conducted and inquiry report submitted.
A day after the mishap, Collector Sushant Mohapatra constituted a six-member fact-finding committee to probe into the incident in which 46 persons, including firefighters and hospital staff, were affected. The committee comprised SCBMCH Superintendent; Superintending Engineer of Public Health and Engineering Organisation (PHEO); Regional Officer of State Pollution Control Board; Assistant Director of Factories and Boilers and Assistant Fire Officer and it was headed by Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Raghuram Iyer. After receiving the probe report, Collector submitted it to the Housing and Urban Development Department on December 5.
Sources said the probe panel had mentioned the details as to how and why the mishap occurred and who was responsible. The team had also suggested measures to avoid such incidents in future. It is alleged that due to departmental red-tape, necessary action is yet to be initiated on the confidential report. “We had seen the mishap and then the probe but are yet to know the cause of the incident and action,” said the locals.
It may be recalled that the incident occurred on November 29 when one of the three unused chlorine gas cylinders, which were lying dumped inside the pump house of PHEO on the premises of SCBMCH for about six years, developed cracks due to excess rusting and gas leaked from it.