Recalling how the Indian Coast Guard was involved in the detection and clean-up of the oil spill in Ennore and surrounding areas, a senior officer on board ICGS SHAURYA on Friday, January 12, 2024, underlined the absence of private companies that specialised in cleaning up oil spills in this part of the country.
If the polluter could not clean up, there were private companies in the United States, Europe or Japan to tackle these situations, he said: “Unfortunately, in India, a few companies operate in major cities alone,” Coast Guard’s Regional Commander (Eastern Region) Inspector-General, Donny Michael, said.
There were such companies in Visakhapatnam and Mumbai but Chennai did not have such companies, he pointed out. While the T.N. Pollution Control Board had powers to issue warnings and towards the closure of polluting premises, the Coast Guard did not have such powers, he said, while talking to reporters.
