'No toxic ship coming to Gujarat':

Toxic Watch Alliance (TWA), an environmentalist NGO, on Wednesday, wrote a letter to ministries of environment & forests, shipping and steel, that they must refuse the entry of Bangladesh rejected hazardous vessel 'Gulf Jash' in Indian waters.

On the other hand, shipbreakers in Alang have said that this is one more false attempt of defaming Gujarat's ship recycling industries.

The 182-metre-long vessel, previously named 'Probo Koala', was originally owned by Netherlands-based Trafigura and is believed to be carrying toxic chemicals, including mercaptant - a group of sulphur-containing substances, that attack the respiratory system, and hydrogen, that affects the central nervous system.

It is believed that it may also contain hazardous asbestos, PCBs, toxic paints, fuel and other chemical residues, which have not been cleaned up before sending the ship for dismantling.

Global Marketing Systems (GMS), the US-based company operating the ship, sold Gulf Jash at Bangladesh, but the government there denied her entry last week. TWA sources now fear that the ship may now land at Alang shipbreaking yard.

However, both the port officer of Alang, and the country-based representative of GMS, denied estimated time of arrival (ETA) of the ship in India.

Talking to DNA, Capt Sudhir Chaddha, port officer of Alang said, “We have informed Ship Recycling Association of India (SRIA) not to declare the dubious ship at Alang without prior consent of local authorities or directions received from the Government of India. As of now, neither shipbreakers, nor shipping agents have contacted us for bringing the ship at Alang.

Komalkant Sharma, brother of owner of GMS, Anil Sharma, also said that he is not aware of the toxic laden ship heading towards Alang. “I or my firm Leela Ship Recycling will not buy the ship or cut it at Alang,” Komalkant said, adding that he was not aware that GMS had sold the dubious ship elsewhere.

In 2006, the company Trafigura had used the ship to illegally dump 528 tones of toxic waste in Abidjan, the largest city of the Ivory Coast, causing the death of 16 people.

Source: Daily News & Analysis. By Mahebub Kureshi. Place: Ahmedabad.

Thursday, 2 June 2011

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_no-toxic-ship-coming-to-gujarat_1550289