GIASPURA GAS TRAGEDY: NGT points out major ‘anomalies’ in probe led by PPCB Chairman

Tribune News Service

Nitin Jain

Ludhiana, October 17

“Rejecting” the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) Chairman-led inquiry report while finding it “not convincing” and ordering a fresh independent probe into the Giaspura gas leak tragedy, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has pointed out major “anomalies” in the investigation.

The eight-member fact-finding joint committee, headed by the PPCB Chairman, Adarsh Pal Vig, had conducted the probe and had concluded in its report that actual causes of the incident are “very difficult” to establish while giving a “clean chit” to polluting industries on the ground that “no polluting industry was responsible for the incident”.

The 397-page voluminous report was submitted to the NGT on October 11, after conducting the inquiry for over five months.

The sudden release of high concentration of hydrogen sulphide (H2S) gas from a roadside manhole in Giaspura here on April 30 had claimed 11 lives, including five of a family, and had left four injured.

Taking a suo motu notice of the incident, the NGT Principal Bench, headed by the then chairperson Adarsh Kumar Goel and comprising the then judicial member Sudhir Agarwal and executive member Dr A Senthil Vel, had on May 2 ordered to constitute the panel to inquire and submit its report to the Tribunal on or before June 30.

Taking up the matter on Friday, the NGT Bench, headed by Chairperson Prakash Shrivastava and comprising judicial member Sudhir Agarwal and expert member A Senthil, said the report had mentioned that seven major electroplating and pickling units had been found to be major violators but no action had been initiated against them except issuing directions. “It is also mentioned that one of the units, Guru Nanak Enterprise, was “maintaining outlet for discharge of untreated effluent into sewer” and several such industries have no NoC and ETPs/CETP but they were using acid for industrial purposes,” the NGT pointed out.

In a four-page order, a copy of which was made available to The Tribune on Tuesday, the Principal Bench quoted the PPCB letter indicating that household cleaning detergent in the municipal waste system would have been the source for H2S, and said: “There is no basis for making this statement by the PPCB.” Referring to a scientific paper, it said household cleaning products had no threat to human health, environment and claims made were false and misleading.

The order also referred to the report stating that anaerobic condition, low flow velocities and warm temperatures generate H2S but on the previous evening of the incident, there was heavy rain in the affected area and lot of rainwater was carried out by sewerage stream leading to dilution of industrial effluent, if any. “If this is so, the rainwater should have washed away/diluted the sewage which was collected as well. Further, the night temperature at the end of April was 20-21 degrees,” it noted.

Further, quoting a PPCB letter indicating that 90 per cent of sulphide will be present as H2S at pH 6, whereas as per the report, at the incident site, the pH indicated was 2.51-2.59, the NGT said this was extremely acidic condition under which H2S formation from sewage could be insignificant.

“Further, the PPCB analysis report of the sewer indicates pH as 7.2, 5.7, 6.8, and 7.4 at the said sewer sites. However, on the date of incident, a pH of 2.5 was recorded in the same sewer. This anomaly has not been explained,” the Bench pointed out.

Referring to the PPCB interim report that there were two polluting units within 100 m and 15 polluting units and 14 pickling units within 200-500 m, the order said no details of their effluent discharge/ quantity and mode of discharge/ treatment had been provided, including the consents. “It is also indicated that during the survey, some premises were found close. The PPCB has failed to provide details whether these units were discharging through sewer, ETP or by tankers,” the NGT mentioned.

Victims’ kin compensated

The NGT noted in the order that the District Magistrate has informed that the compensation at the rate of Rs 20 lakh each to the heirs of 11 persons, who had lost their lives in the tragedy, had been paid within one month from the date of passing of the Tribunal’s first order on May 2.

Deputy Commissioner, PPCB to assist

The NGT has ordered District Magistrate and DC Surabhi Malik and the PPCB to extend full cooperation and assistance as well as logistic support to the fresh committee during its visit.

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