Chennai Oil spill: FIR against cargo ship companies

The authorities had initially claimed that there was not oil spill.

Chennai, Feb 4: The Tamil Nadu police on Friday registered a FIR against the management of the two cargo ships that collided leading to the toxic oil spill on the Chennai coastline.

The FIR came on the day the Madras High Court asked for FIRs to be filed against those responsible for the collision. On January 28, MT Dawn Kanchipuram, carrying petroleum oil lubricants and MT BW Maple, loaded with LPG, collided off Kamarajar Port in Tamil Nadu.

While authorities claimed that there was no oil spill initially, a thin sheet of oil spill began forming along the coastline on Sunday.

Crude oil from one of the cargo ships spilled into the sea and the oil has spread over a 30 km stretch along the coast.

The Minjur police in north Chennai filed cases on the basis Kamarajar port authorities and asked the captains of both oil tankers to submit their reports immediately. Cases were registered under sections including charges of polluting the sea waters. Meanwhile, a separate inquiry has been initiated by port authorities to find the cause of the collision. The demand for both companies to take up the cost of clean up is now being made even as more than 1000 people are attempting to clean up the oil spill.

OneIndia News