Giaspura gas tragedy: Industrial effluent discharge led to death of 11 persons, says CPCB
Nitin Jain
LUDHIANA, JULY 6
“The facts strongly point towards the discharge of industrial effluent as the cause of highly acidic water in the main sewer in the area and also the cause of the release of hydrogen sulphide (H2S) gas in the sewer line in high concentration, leading to collapse and death of 11 persons,” the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has reported.
NGT panel yet to submit report
- Even as the magisterial inquiry and other multiple probes had been concluded, all eyes were on the fact-finding committee inquiry ordered by the NGT
- The green tribunal’s principal Bench on May 2 ordered formation of an eight-member fact-finding joint panel under PPCB chairman Adarsh Pal Vig and sought the report by June 30
- “We have already conducted three meetings and our proceedings are still underway. We are compiling all the reports and facts received from different quarters,” Vig said.
The CPCB has reported this after conducting the investigation into the tragic incident of 11 deaths due to the toxic gas leakage from a roadside manhole at Giaspura here on April 30.
The CPCB team comprising scientists G Rambabu, Dr Narender Sharma, Kamlesh Singh and Nazimuddin had visited the site on May 3.
In its report submitted to the fact-finding committee of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), which was conducting a final probe into the major tragedy, a copy of which is with The Tribune, the CPCB said the presence of sulphide in sewer water as H2S was due to biochemical reduction of the sulphate present in water.
The report stated that if industrial effluents containing metals and heavy metals were discharged into the sewers, the metals were precipitated as metal sulphides in the sewer lines. “These metal sulphides, in the presence of acids/acid effluents containing H2SO4 and/ or HCL, end up generating hydrogen sulphide gas,” it noted.
The CPCB scientists concluded that intermittent discharge of acidic and metallic industrial effluents/waste into the mixed sewers can be a source of sudden release of hydrogen sulphide gas in a very high concentration from such sewers.
Most industries in Ludhiana use both hydrochloric and sulphuric acid, the investigations have revealed. It was also found that a few industries in Giaspura have acid pickling steps in their manufacturing process. The chloride content in the main sewer water near the accident site was found higher in comparison to distant points (both upstream and downstream), which may be due to the use of hydrochloric acid in the area.
