THOOTHUKUDI: At a time when the transport sector is hit by the skyrocketing price of diesel, the fishing industry in the district is largely remaining unaffected.
The reason: Most of the fishermen have switched on to cheaply available Waste Plastic Pyrolysis Oil (WPPO) aka 'plastic oil', being sold under the pretext of biodiesel.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, the fishermen said the insufficiency of the subsidised fuel and the spiralling diesel price have forced the owners of the fishing vessels to opt for the cheaply available plastic oil.
The State government annually provides 4,000 litres of Tax Exempted High-Speed Diesel for each of the 1,445 diesel card holders among motorised country craft boat owners and 18,000 litres to 369 mechanised vessel owners of Thoothukudi, Tharuvaikulam and Vembar fishing harbours, giving a tax cut of Rs 15 to Rs 16 per litre. Besides, subsidised kerosene to the tune of 3,400 litres per country boat is being provided to 1,275 kerosene card holders at a rate of Rs 25 per litre.
With the diesel prices touching newer heights and the dwindling fishing resources, the mechanised vessel operators of Thoothukudi fishing harbour have resolved to reduce their sailing to three days in a week as against the previous six days schedule. The Thoothukudi fishing harbour, home to a fleet of more than 250 mechanised vessels, operates at least 120 vessels every day.
The mechanised vessel fishermen said they normally fish at 50 nautical mile off the coast, which require at least 1,500 litres of diesel per day that costs nearly Rs 1.4 lakh. "But the 1,800 litres of tax exempted diesel given by the government for a month suffices only for a single day fishing," the fishermen said.
As fuel expenditure eats into a major portion of their remunerations, the cheaply available plastic oil has become worthy to be an alternative for the conventional diesel, fishermen say.
Sources in the fishing industry told The New Indian Express the plastic oil is available for Rs 70 per litre, while the tax-exempt high speed diesel that costs around Rs 80 per litre. Due to a humongous demand over 1.5 lakh litres of plastic oil is peddled into Thoothukudi from Sankagiri, Atur of Salem district and Coimbatore and Erode districts, in order to fuel over 100 mechanised vessels.
Over 50 mechanised vessels in Tharuvaikulam fishing harbour also use plastic oil, he noted.
A mechanised fishing vessel owners' association leader said using plastic oil saves at least Rs 15,000 during sailing, and hence it is becoming an alternative fuel for the fishing industry. "Though it does not increase mileage, its low price is lucrative for the business," he added.
An elderly fisherman said most of them believe that it is biodiesel. "Only a very few know it is plastic oil," he said.
As plastic oil could potentially damage the engines, the mafia had also distributed a peculiar motor to be fitted with the engines and a metal diesel filter to avoid malfunctioning.
A mechanised vessel owner, wishing anonymity, said the plastic oil suppliers had assured to rectify the diesel engines if they get damaged after using plastic oil.
Smuggling
The plastic oil, sources said, is smuggled into Thoothukudi every day in tankers in the guise of motor-spirit. The oil is shifted in 200-litre barrels from warehouses to the fishing harbours on small trucks.The distribution happens at seven godowns - two at Mapilaiyoorani diversion on Ettayapuram road, two near Fisheries College, one each at Madathur arch, Harbour Express Highway and another at Maravanmadam. "In addition, a leading fuel station functioning on Ettayapuram road supplies the diesel blended with plastic oil for the lorries," they said.
A rough calculation shows a revenue loss of Rs 1.3 crore per day for the government authorised fuel stations, totalling to a loss in excess of Rs 250 crore annually. "As the plastic oil mafia has taken full control of the fishing harbours by bribing the top officials and the vessel owners' associations in the past two years, it needs to be investigated on the economic offences angle," experts said.
| What is plastic oil? Plastic oil is extracted by pyrolysis of discarded waste plastic materials. The production of plastic oil, which is largely viewed as a credible solution to end plastic pollution, finds application in a gamut of industries for lubrication purposes. Given the thermal efficiency, the running stability and the reliability of the plastic oil, they can also suitably operate diesel engines after blending with biodiesel. |
A fishermen association leader said the illegal supply of plastic oil could lead to gang wars between the suppliers since it is becoming a high-stake business.
When contacted, Tamil Nadu Fisheries Development Corporation (TNFDC) officials said they are not authorised to speak to the media.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, Civil Supplies-CID Superintendent of Police Baskaran said they have seized over four tankers ferrying the plastic oil without proper invoice. "We are yet to investigate into the illegitimate use of plastic oil for the fishing industry," he added.
An IOCL official said the State government has not issued authorisation for anyone to market bio-diesel, however many spurious oil products and adulterated diesel are being marketed to the fishing industry in the black market.
"The oil companies raised a complaint with the State government on the spurious products as the fuel sales drastically dipped at various fuel stations in Thoothukudi and other parts of the State," he added.