KOCHI: The Kochi police have sought the assistance of the American space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to clear the mystery behind the fire breakout at Brahmapuram. The city police have sent a letter to NASA through the India Meteorological Department for getting satellite images to identify the exact place where the fire broke out.
City Police Commissioner K Sethuraman said they will also seek the help of the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority to ascertain whether there was any sabotage attempt behind the blaze, as there were allegations that the fire was set deliberately by the contractor of the waste treatment.
“We have sent a letter to NASA to obtain satellite imagery that will help our probe. Earlier, in many cases they have provided such assistance,” Sethuraman told TNIE. “Besides, we will seek the assistance of KSDMA to get a clear picture of the entire episode,” he added.
The fire that raged for more than 10 days was suspected to have broken out simultaneously in various locations of the garbage heaps at the waste treatment plant spread over around 100 acres. The Opposition has been up in arms, alleging a lack of effective probe into the fire incident. The Infopark police have registered a case for unnatural fire occurrence based on the complaint of a member of Vadavucode-Puthencruz grama panchayat, where the Brahmapuram dumpyard is located.
The inquiry by the special investigation team headed by Thrikkakara ACP P V Baby is mainly looking into the possibility of sabotage. There were allegations that even after recording the statements of 12 persons who were present at the plant on the day of the fire breakout, the police inquiry could not make any headway.
However, officials claimed that police have collected samples from various locations of the plant as part of their probe to find out whether there was a sabotage attempt. Besides, the statement of the contractor was also collected.
According to police officials, CCTV visuals from five days before the fire breakout have been collected and are verifying them for possible sabotage, including trespass. The team will also verify visuals of even more days if required, they said. The probe is also looking into how the plastic waste caught fire on March 2, leading to heavy smoke billowing from the plant, posing health issues to city residents.