2nd gas leak in Vizag raises safety concerns

Repeated accidents expose the careless attitude of the officials, whose job is supposed to inspect the facilities and ensure that emissions and safety apparatus is maintained as per prescribed norms. In the LG Polymers case, the experts' committee found that gas leakage was due to bad maintenance

Visakhapatnam: Second gas leak at Seeds Intimate Apparel India (Private) Ltd located at Brandix India Apparel City (BIAC) at Atchutapuram, about 40 km from here within two months leading to breathing difficulty, suffocation, nausea and dizziness to over 100 women workers on Wednesday evening has once again raised the suspicion that the safety apparatus in the industrial clusters of North Andhra has gone for a toss.

Incidentally, there has been no let-up in industrial accidents in recent years. Several lives were claimed in the blast at Steel Melt Shop of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, oxygen tower collapse at HPCL Visakh Refinery, Hetero Drugs, Divi's Lab, multiple units at Jawaharlal Nehru Pharma City and LG Polymers. Everytime there has been a promise by the powers-that-be that there will be stringent action to prevent recurrence of such accidents but in practice, there is no relief.

Even as the cause of gas leakage at the same place, the AC ducts of the Brandix's unit that occurred on June 3 remained a mystery till now, the second incident led to hospitalisation of over 100 women workers at NTR Area Hospital and other hospitals at Anakapalle and nearby areas. BIAC is India's largest single location intimate apparel making unit providing its products to the United States and Europe has over 18,000 women workers.

After a visit to the accident spot and enquiring about the condition of the injured workers at Anakapalle, Minister for Industries and Commerce Gudivada Amarnath said on Thursday that stringent action would be initiated against those found responsible for the gas leak. He said none of the injured was serious and declared that they would conduct safety audits of hazardous industries periodically.

Porus Laboratory Private Ltd, a pharma unit located too close to BIAC, was shut down on the orders of AP Pollution Control Board after the first gas leak at Seeds' unit. However, the unit was later given permission to resume operations.

"Repeated accidents expose the careless attitude of the officials concerned, whose job is supposed to inspect the facilities and ensure that emissions and safety apparatus is maintained as per prescribed norms. In the LG Polymers case, which killed 11 and injured over 1,000, the experts' committee found that leakage of styrene monomer gas was due to bad maintenance," CITU State president Ch Narsinga Rao, told Bizz Buzz.

"Occurrence of two gas leak accidents at the Brandix unit at Achutapuram SEZ within a short span has exposed the incompetence of the different State agencies to ensure industrial safety and safeguard the people's health," EAS Sarma, social activist and retired IAS officer, said.

"Inaction on the part of the government to proceed against its own officials for their failures, to prosecute the company officials has led to this. Brandix should be compelled to compensate the victims and pay a deterrent penalty to the government," he said.

Reacting to the incident, the management of BIAC said "with regard to the incident that transpired on August 2 evening at the Seeds Intimate Apparel India Private Limited (Seeds), located within the BIAC, few of our associates complained of an unpleasant odour in the atmosphere, and as a result some of them were taken to the closest hospital for medical precaution."

The company said "the safety and well-being of our associates is of utmost importance and we have evacuated all the associates. The affected associates are in a stable condition."