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The National Green Tribunal Southern Zone appointed a committee yesterday to investigate the Ammonia Gas Leak which happened on May 15 from a Urea Plant in Chennai’s Manali.
The tribunal took suo moto cognizance of the issue following media reports questioned on the permissible emission rate of the plant. The reports also questioned the precautions in the plant for the safety of its employees.
The event took place on May 15 from Madras Fertilizers Limited (MFL), a public sector plant where ammonia gas leaked. Immediately after the leakage, the near residents of Mathur MMDA colony woke up due to itchiness in their skin, foul smell and extreme heat. They also felt nauseated and breathless.
The plant was a fertilizer manufacturing company included among hazardous industries as it dealt with Ammonia which is hazardous in nature.
The bench comprising Justices K Ramakrishnan and Saibal Dasgupta took suo moto cognizance of the issue after the media report revealed that the plant lacked full-fledged security measures for the safety of the employees. They observed that the leakage was minor but the safety measures of the plant were not enough to ensure safety of the employees. The bench said that the company should be more precautious as their activity involves a lot of risk for the employees and nearby residents. The bench further said that the company was dealing with a hazardous substance therefore was obligated to follow the security regulations and ensure safety of the employees and the people residing in nearby area.
The committee comprises of the representatives from Union Ministry for Environment, Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and Tiruvallur District Collector. They have been directed to assess whether the provisions of Hazardous Waste (Management & Trans boundary Movement) Rules, 2016 were violated by the plant and subsequently submit a report on environmental compensation. The committee is also required to investigate whether the emission standard of Ammonia was within the permissible limits or not.
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