Rajamahendravaram: Industrial gas leaks pose major threat

Rajamahendravaram: Even though East Godavari district has developed industrially along with development in oil and gas and other fields, the people residing near the factories are expressing concern over their safety.

Gas leakages pose a grave threat to the people in recent times in which many people died and hundreds suffered. Under ease of doing business concept, the inspections by industries department, pollution and environmental departments etc become a routine.

At the time of the incidents, respective factory managements make tall promises as usual and the district administration conducts review meetings about the security levels in the factories. Mainly, the people in and around Kakinada and Konaseema area are in the grip of fear about the hazardous industries.

Many oil refineries, fertilizer industries, chemical industries and oil and gas exploration companies are located around Kakinada and in Konseeema area. Neither the government nor the industries conducting any awareness meetings to face challenges during emergency situations like accidents. Gas leakages from oil majors in Konaseema have become a common feature.

Oil and fertilizer companies are maintaining stock points of their products on the outskirts of Kakinada and the people residing there are spending sleepless nights because of bitter experiences.

Nagarjuna Fertilizers and Chemical Limited and Coromandel Fertilizers work with ammonium gas. So far many industries are not having necessary machinery to arrest the leakage of gas or give alert to the people.

According to an official of Industries Department, the district is having 21 hazardous industries, 89 limited hazardous industries and 300 less hazardous industries out of 1,500 total industries of all categories. The effect of hazardous industries poses problems to the people on a massive scale and the effect of limited hazardous industries has less impact.

Meanwhile, the department is issuing notices whenever the officials found lapses relating to security arrangements etc in the respective factories. NFCL and Coromandel Fertilizers fall under hazardous industries.

Several incidents of ammonium gas leakages near Kakinada and gas leakages from oil majors in Konaseema area had been reported. There were casualties during some mishaps.

In 2012 May, 24 persons were hospitalised and some died in Vakalapudi village near Kakinada because of gas leakage from a factory. In January, 2013, two persons died when gas leaked from Coromandel Fertilizesr and in June, 2014 as many as 15 persons died due to gas leakage from GAIL pipeline in Nagaram village of Konaseema area.

In 2014, hundreds of people were admitted in the hospital because of gas leakage from a seafoods company near Peddapuram. In 2017 also hundreds of people were hospitalised when gas leaked from an aqua processing unit in Gurajanapalli village and during November 2017 also gas leaked from Nikhil oil refinery in Vakalapudi village and in February this year gas leakage was reported from PHF company near Uppada village and people in five nearby villages were evacuated.