Mumbai:
The Mumbai Police has registered a case against unknown persons under the Environment Protection Act in connection with the chlorine gas leak in Mumbai Port Trust on Wednesday, in which over 100 people fell sick.
(See Pictures)The charges included in the First Information Report (FIR) are attempt to commit culpable homicide, causing hurt by dangerous weapon, negligent conduct with respect to poisonous substance and endangering life or personal safety of others.
"We have registered an FIR against unidentified persons (in the gas leakage case) at Sewri police station and started probing the matter," DCP Khalid Kaisar told PTI.
"When the cylinders were brought here to the Port Trust, who imported them and why they were lying since over ten decades will be among the various things the police would look into it," he said.
The DCP said the Port Trust has been guarding the cylinders and as of now the police are not holding the Port Trust responsible for the incident.
Meanwhile, the clean-up at the site is on. "Overnight three cylinders containing chlorine gas have beenneutralised unto 80 per cent. One cylinder is giving a problem as itsgas valve is not functioning. So neutralising that cylinder is takingtime. They will take at least another 24 hours to complete theoperation," said Vinay Kajla, Commandant, CISF, Mumbai Port TrustDivision.
At 3.15 on Wednesday morning, a gas leak from a chlorine cylinder at the Mumbai Port Trust filled the air. At least a 100 people fell sick when they inhaled the gas. The condition of eight persons, admitted in JJ hospital, is said to be critical.
(Watch: Students affected by Mumbai gas leak)For more than six hours, fire-fighters tried to neutralize the gas filling the air with sodium hydroxide sprays. The major fear: that there are more than a hundred cylinders similar to the one that caused this morning's disaster lying in the same warehouse. "That is supposed to be an empty cylinder of chlorine, but sometimes you have residual chlorine which remains in the cylinder and that leaked out," explained Rahul Asthana, the Deputy Chairman of the Mumbai Port Trust. So who is responsible for them? "They were not taken by the importer and they are lying confiscated here in the hazardous cargo go-down," said Asthana.
(Watch: Maharashtra Health Minister on chlorine leak)A 45-member team of the National Disaster Response Force was brought in from Pune to figure out how to safely dispose the remaining cylinders. "Out of 105 cylinders that have been found, 100 are clean but five still have chlorine in them. We are trying to neutralise them on the spot," SA Ahmed, Assistant Commandant of the National Disaster Response Force said on Wednesday. One container takes six hours to neutralise and these should be cleaned by Thursday morning, he added.
Ahmed also said, "To ensure safety we have asked people to leave the area and have cordoned it off. Both colleges in the area have been evacuated. I have requested the state government to check if there are other cylinders like this in other locations."
The big questions that officials now have to answer: Given that these cylinders were confiscated 15 years ago, why have they still not been disposed off when it was clear that these contained hazardous material? Further, why did nobody seem aware that the cylinders still had some chlorine in them?
The Shipping Ministry has also ordered the Mumbai Port Trust to file a detailed report on how such a leak could occur. "The Mumbai Port Trust is checking its records to find out if any action had been taken for the disposal of hazardous material in the past," said an official statement from the Mumbai Port Trust. (With PTI inputs)