Ship accident in Kerala: Remove plastic particles from the sea of Tamil Nadu: Chief Minister gave instructions
Tamil Nadu : Following the Kerala shipwreck, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has directed that if plastic particles are found in Tamil Nadu waters, they should be removed immediately. Plastic particles and other material are being dumped in the southern coastal districts of Tamil Nadu due to the shipwreck ‘Elsa 3’ in the Arabian Sea off the Kerala coast. Chief Minister M.K. Stalin held a meeting at the Chief Secretariat on Friday to discuss precautionary and safety measures taken to remove these. The Tamil Nadu government issued a statement about this consultation meeting: Chief Minister M.K. Stalin asked Additional Chief Secretary of the Environment Department Supriya Sahu if there was an oil spill and whether it would cause any harm to fisheries and marine life, as plastic particles from a shipwreck have washed up on the western coast of Kanyakumari district. Responding to this, Supriya Sahu said that a study on the environmental impact is being conducted with scientific experts from the National Institute of Ocean Technology, National Centre for Coastal Strategy Management, National Centre for Marine Research and Anna University. Speaking after him, Revenue and Disaster Management Secretary P. Amudha said that the Disaster Management Authority has issued instructions and guidelines to the District Collectors of Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Ramanathapuram and all the concerned government departments regarding the disposal of plastic particles.
Following this, Fisheries Secretary N. Subbayan said that the department officials have been instructed to check whether there is any harm to marine life and fishermen and whether plastic particles are present in the stomachs of fish.
Plastic particles: Speaking on this, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said that there should be a constant watch on the direction in which plastic particles and containers move according to the weather conditions and in which areas they can wash ashore.
The work of removing plastic particles by volunteers should be done in a safe manner. Police, fire and pollution control board officials should be coordinated to ensure that the work is done quickly.
The general public and fishermen should follow the instructions regarding safety precautions. The concerned District Magistrate should issue a protocol for this.
He said that short-term and long-term studies should be done on the environmental impact of the shipwreck. The Fisheries Department should expedite the study to find out the impact on fish and marine life.
