With the Centre refusing the controversial ship Platinum II permission to berth in Gujarat for dismantling, the ship-breaking industry at Alang in Bhavnagar district may lose business to the tune of around Rs 40 crore,

apart from the Government losing Rs 4 crore in Customs duty and Rs 1
crore sales tax, says Mr Komal Kant Sharma, the owner of Leela Ship
Recycling Pvt Ltd.

Mr Sharma had offered to buy the decommissioned ship for $4.85 million
and was awaiting various clearances before making the payment.

“I have now told my agent about my rethink on buying the ship and it is
up to the present owner to decide on its fate. But it is a huge loss to
the already ailing ship-breaking industry,” he told Business Line.

Doubts over ownership

He claimed that the Government had given in to the “arm-twisting
tactics of NGOs who are resorting to ‘commercial terrorism’.”
Questioning the Government decision, he said: “We have been granted no
opportunity to explain and not a single document exists to prove how
the ship could be hazardous.” But according to Mr Vishnu Kumar Gupta,
President, Alang Ship Recycling Industries Association, Bhavnagar, the
Centre apparently refused permission to the ship not because of its
alleged ‘hazardous’ material — which, according to him, are within
pollution control norms — but because of controversy over ownership.

Last week, the Ministry of Environment and Forests, based on a report
submitted by the technical experts’ team, had directed Gujarat Maritime
Board to disallow the beaching and breaking of Platinum II anchored off
the Alang coastline, and its subsequent dismantling at the Alang yard.

Hazardous hold?

According to the NGO Indian Platform on Ship-breaking, which campaigned
against Platinum II on the grounds that it contained 210 tonnes of
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 250 tonnes of asbestos as part of
its construction, the Republic of Kiribati, where the ship was
registered, clarified that the papers filed with India by the
ship-owners were fake. This was allegedly done to facilitate its
dismantling in India while keeping the countries concerned in the dark.

Why was the ship seen as ‘hazardous’? The Gujarat Pollution Control
Board and the Gujarat Maritime Board had inspected the ship on arrival
and certified it as safe and radioactive-free.

The NGO had objected to this and brought the issue to the notice of the
Centre, which appointed a technical experts’ committee to inspect the
ocean liner. The committee reported that though the ship, like any
vessel of its size, contained hazardous substances such as
asbestos-containing material and PCBs, apart from some radioactive
material, it did not contain such material in loose form or as cargo.

Reports of a hole at the bottom of Platinum II had complicated matters
in October, with environmentalists warning of a possible toxic leak
from the hull threatening marine life and the coastline. The hole was
sealed under the supervision of the Central team.

With the Centre refusing the controversial ship Platinum II permission
to berth in Gujarat for dismantling, the ship-breaking industry at
Alang in Bhavnagar district may lose business to the tune of around Rs
40 crore, apart from the Government losing Rs 4 crore in customs duty
and Rs 1 crore sales tax, says Mr Komal Kant Sharma, the owner of Leela
Ship Recycling Pvt Ltd.

Mr Sharma had offered to buy the decommissioned ship for $4.85 million
and was awaiting various clearances before making the payment.

“I have now told my agent about my rethink on the ship-buying and it is
up to the present owner to decide on its fate. But it is a huge loss to
the already ailing ship-breaking industry,” he told Business Line.

Doubts over ownership

He claimed that the Government had given in to the “arm-twisting
tactics of NGOs who are resorting to ‘commercial terrorism’.”
Questioning the Government decision, he said,

“We have been granted no opportunity to explain and not a single
document exists to prove how the ship could be hazardous.” But
according to Mr Vishnu Kumar Gupta, President, Alang Ship Recycling
Industries Association, Bhavnagar, the Centre apparently disallowed the
ship not because of its alleged ‘hazardous’ material — which, according
to him, are within pollution control norms — but because of controversy
over ownership.

Last week, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests had, based on
a report submitted by the technical experts’ team, directed Gujarat
Maritime Board to disallow the beaching and breaking of Platinum II
anchored off the Alang coastline, and its subsequent dismantling at
Alang ship-breaking yard.

The once-lucrative ship-breaking industry at Alang is already facing
rough weather in the form of competition from Bangladesh, China and
other countries in the East that have set up their own ‘graveyards’ for
retired ships, whose recycling has triggered many businesses and
created employment opportunities.

The voyage so far…

Built in 1951, the 18,500-tonne ship, originally known as SS
Independence and then SS Oceanic, registered in the US, underwent many
changes until it surfaced as Platinum II. In September 2009, it was
reportedly registered in the Republic of Kiribati, an island-nation in
the Pacific Ocean, in the name of Platinum Investment Services
Corporation, Liberia.

Earlier, the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) had levied
penalties of $518,500 against Global Shipping LLC and its affiliate
Global Shipping Marketing Systems Inc for ‘exporting’ the controversial
ship for disposal outside the US, in violation of various laws. In
February 2008, it was towed out of US territorial waters. When it
anchored off Gopnath, 40 nautical miles from Alang coast, on October 7,
it still had a US flag painted on its chimney.

The Centre asked Gujarat Maritime Board to also probe allegations that
the ship had been brought into India with a falsified flag and
registry.

Hazardous hold?

According to the NGO Indian Platform On Ship-breaking, which campaigned
against Platinum II on the grounds that it contained 210 tonnes of
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 250 tonnes of asbestos as part of
its construction, Kiribati had clarified that the papers filed with
India by the ship-owners were fake. This was allegedly done to
facilitate its dismantling in India while keeping the countries
concerned in the dark.

Why was the ship seen as ‘hazardous’? The Gujarat Pollution Control
Board and the Gujarat Maritime Board had inspected the ship on arrival
and certified it as safe and radioactive-free.

The NGO had objected to this and brought the issue to the notice of the
Centre, which appointed a technical experts’ committee to inspect the
ocean liner.

The committee reported that though the ship, like any vessel of its
size, contained hazardous substances such as asbestos-containing
material (ACM) and PCBs, apart from some radioactive material, it did
not contain such material in loose form or as cargo.

In a similar instance in 2006, the Supreme Court had laid down norms
for pollution control and environmental protection. According to Mr
Gupta, the court allowed breaking of ships with proper disposal of
toxic material in accordance with the norms set by it. The court had
then allowed the dismantling of a Norwegian ship, Blue Lady, which had
1,200 tonnes of asbestos (Platinum II has about 200 tonnes of
asbestos).

A Court-appointed technical committee comprising nominees from the
Ministry of Environment and Forests, Gujarat Pollution Control Board,
Gujarat Maritime Board, and the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board
supervised the dismantling of Blue Lady.

Reports of a hole in the bottom of Platinum II had complicated matters
in October, with environmentalists warning of a possible toxic leak
from the hull threatening marine life and the coastline. The hull had
been cleared of water and the hole sealed under the supervision of the
Central team.

Source: The Hindu Business Line

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