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Component-I (A) - Personal Details
Component-I (B) - Description of Module
Items Description of Module
Subject Name Geography
Paper Name Disaster management
Module Name/Title Management of Chemical & Industrial
Disasters in India
Module Id DM-10
Pre-requisites
Objectives
Keywords
Role Name Affiliation
Principal Investigator Prof. Masood Ahsan
Siddiqui
Department of
Geography,
Jamia Millia Islamia,
New Delhi
Paper Coordinator, if any Dr. Rajnish Ranjan Vice President,
Skymet
Content Writer/Author
(CW)
Prof. Masood A Siddiqui Department of
Geography,
Jamia Millia Islamia, New
Delhi
Content Reviewer (CR) Dr. Rajnish Ranjan Vice President,
Skymet
Language Editor (LE)
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Management of Chemical & Industrial Disasters in India
Introduction: The chemicals play a very important role in human
life and have contributed enormously in our day today routine,
directly or indirectly. With the advent of globalization and rapid
industrialization, a phenomenal increase has been observed in
chemical industries all over the world. However, in parallel to
industrial growth, the risks of occurrence of chemical incidents
(leading to disasters) have also increased in multiples. Chemical
(Industrial) disasters may be traumatic in their impacts on human
beings and have resulted in the casualties and also damages nature
and property. The elements which are at highest risks due to
chemical disaster primarily include the industrial plant, its
employees & workers, hazardous chemicals vehicles, the
residents of nearby settlements, adjacent buildings, occupants and
the surrounding community. In addition to loss of life the major
consequences of chemical industrial disasters include, impact on
livestock, flora & fauna, and the environment (air, soil,
water). The vulnerability (exposure) is further compounded by
operations of industrial plants, which are poorly maintained, not
ready to handle the extreme conditions. The other major concerns
are linked with manufacturing, storage, installation, poor waste
management and especially the movement of hazardous (harmful)
chemicals, through transport vehicles and railway lines, which may
encounter the unsafe conditions while in motion. The residents are
highly vulnerable if they do not know the possible dangers and have
no escape plan. There might be typical adverse effects of chemical
explosions which may cause the destruction of infrastructure,
especially buildings. The industrial fires may reach very high
temperatures and affect large areas that may kill many people with
considerable injuries. Many of the affected people may also require
emergency medical treatment. Hazardous (harmful) substances
released into water or in the air may travel long distances and
contaminate water supply, air, soil, crops and livestocks making
the affected area uninhabitable for humans. Further, due to
chemical industrial disaster, the wildlife may be destroyed and
ecological systems are disrupted. This is the major reason of
concern for ecological and environmental imbalance.
Status of Chemical Industrial Disaster Risks in India
In India, the increasing use of hazardous substances by
industrial units with inadequate safety infrastructure has raised
serious concern over industrial plants, safety of workers in
factory premises and home workers operating from small
establishments. Hazardous Chemical (HAZCHEM) vehicles, residents of
nearby settlements, adjacent buildings, occupants and the
surrounding environment (including livestock, flora and fauna) are
also considered vulnerable . There are numerous cases of the
release of hazardous substances into water or in the air that had
travelled long distances and contaminated water supply, air, soil,
crops and livestock, making the affected area uninhabitable for
humans and livestock. Therefore extreme care is warranted in
handling of chemicals at all stages of manufacture, processing,
package, storage, transportation, sale, use and disposal.
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India has witnessed the world’s worst chemical (industrial)
disaster “Bhopal Gas Tragedy” on December 2nd and 3rd, 1984. The
Bhopal Gas tragedy was the most devastating chemical accident in
the history, wherein over 2500 people died (Ref.
www.downtoearth.org.in, Oct 2011) due to the accidental release of
toxic gas Methyl Iso Cyanate (MIC), which is still fresh in our
memories. The Bhopal disaster is also known as the “Hiroshima of
Chemical Industry”. Such accidents are significant in terms of
injuries, pain, suffering, loss of lives, damage to property and
environment. India continued to witness a series of chemical
accidents after Bhopal had demonstrated the vulnerability of
country. Apart from it, our country has faced four major chemical
accidents, that took place during the last 30 years including an
explosion in IPCL Gas Cracker Complex at Nagothane in Maharashtra
(1990); vapour cloud explosion at HPCL refinery at Vishakhapatnam
(1997); fire in an oil well in Andhra Pradesh (2003) and IOCL Fire
Tragedy of Jaipur (October 2009). Only in the last decade, 130
significant chemical accidents reported in India, which resulted
into 259 deaths and 563 number of major injuries.The data table,
comprising year wise information, and the number of chemical
accidents occurred in last decade in respective states, is given in
the table below.
Table: Year wise Chemical Industrial Disasters occurred in past
decade in India
Sr. No.
Year No. of incidents
No. of deaths
No. of injured
States, where incidents were recorded
1 2002 06 05 31 Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashtra
2 2003 06 11 112 Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab,
Kerala
3 2004 18 47 91
Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi,
Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, West Bengal
4 2005 11 15 14 Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Kerala,
Tamilnadu, Uttar Pradesh
5 2006 16 32 24 Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashtra,
Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal
6 2007 18 37 14 Assam, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttarakhand, West Bengal
7 2008 23 50 148 Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Kerala,
Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh
8 2009 24 50 128 Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Haryana, Kerala, Madhya
Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West
Bengal
9 2010 08 12 01 Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra, Punjab,
Uttar Pradesh
Total 130 259 563
Source–MoEF and Disaster Management in India, 2011, Ministry of
Home Affairs, GoI Despite the historical Bhopal disaster (MIC leak)
and innumerable gas leaks, the explosions and accidents reported
over the years, including Jaipur Oil depot fire, Bombay Port Trust
chlorine leak, Sivakasi explosion, Surat IOC fire and East Godavari
NG pipeline leak, are still continued in the country, even after
notifying the Acts, and a larger community is still vulnerable.
Moreover, people are not adequately aware of the risks with which
they are living right now.
http://www.downtoearth.org.in/
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Safety initiatives taken in India to address chemical
(industrial) risk India is amongst those few countries of the
world, which have preserved the right to live in a clean and
wholesome environment as a fundamental right. The Factories Act was
enacted in 1948, for ensuring safety, health and welfare at the
workplace. However Chemical Industrial Disaster Management (CIDM)
received greater emphasis the world over only after the Bhopal
disaster in 1984. Recognizing the need to mainstream environmental
and chemical (industrial) concerns in all developmental activities,
a separate ministry—the MoEF (Ministry of Environment &
Forests) was created in 1985, and was declared as the nodal
ministry for the management of chemical (industrial) disasters.
Later, an umbrella Act, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, (EP
Act) was enacted, which also deals with chemical management &
safety. Under this EP Act, 2 rules have been notified for ensuring
chemical safety: (a) Manufacture, Storage & Import of Hazardous
Chemicals Rules 1989 (MSIHC), amended in 1994 & 2000 (b)
Chemical Accidents (Emergency, Planning, Preparedness and Response)
Rules, 1996 (EPPR Rules). Regulations provide institutional
framework for enforcement of chemical safety and emergency
management with technical support from bodies like PESO (Petroleum
& Explosives Safety Organization), PNGRB etc. It involves
various central/ state ministries/departments viz. Ministry of
Environment & Forests (supported by Central Pollution Control
Board, and Emergency Response Centers), Ministry of Home Affairs
(supported by NDMA), Ministry of Labour& Employment (MoLE),
Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), Ministry of Petroleum & Natural
Gas(MoPNG), Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers(MoCF), Ministry
of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways (MoSRTH), Ministry of
Commerce and Industry(MoCI), Ministry of Health & Family
Welfare (MoHFW), Department of Economic Affairs (DoEA), Ministry of
Finance(MoF), Ministry of Defence (MoD) and others.
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Institutional set up for Chemical Industrial Disaster Management
in India
The above set up depicts the institutional mechanism to address
the chemical industrial disaster management in India, at the state
as well as at the national level. Further, in order to promote
excellence in chemical safety and allied domains, amongst the
industries, the concept of awards and recognition (Ex: National
Safety Award, SHE Award, Suraksha Puraskar, ICC Award, State level
Industrial Safety Award etc) is being followed since long. The
efforts have been supported by the nodal industrial bodies and
safety councils like NSC, FICCI, CII, ICC, ASSOCHAM, PHD Chamber of
Commerce & Industry etc. The same have been appreciated by
concerned ministries, including Ministry of Labour& Employment,
Ministry of Environment & Forest, Ministry of Chemicals &
Fertilizers, state governments and allied Government and private/
corporate entities. In 2007, National Disaster Management Authority
(NDMA) of India had come out with very specific guidelines on the
Chemical Industrial Disaster Management. This has proved to be a
path breaking step pertaining to Chemical industrial disaster
management in India. In 2010, NDMA had come out with another
important guideline, in relation to strengthening of safety and
security for transportation of POL tankers. These guidelines have
been prepared to provide the directions to ministries, departments
and state authorities for the preparation of their detailed
disaster management plans. These guidelines call for a proactive,
participatory, well structured, fail-safe, multi-disciplinary and
multi-sectoral approach at various levels. Further, the exclusive
chapters in guidelines on the Chemical (industrial) installations,
storages, transportation, operational gaps, and mechanism for
implementation, provide a very solid platform towards the chemical
(industrial) safety in India.
Gaps and challenges: Following are the vital gaps and major
challenges need to be addressed for a robust chemical disaster
management in India:-
1. Chemical Industrial safety is a major concern in unorganized
sector, where the workers also deal with hazardous chemicals, but
they are not aware of the risks posed by hazardous substances.
Generally in this sector, neither Factories Act nor any other rule
or policy is applicable directly, because in most cases the
strength of work place is shown less than ten.
2. Based on the central acts, the states have notified their own
rules, which are yet to be dovetailed with subject to chemical
accident prevention, preparedness and mitigation. Its a big
challenge to bring out clarity on complex reporting structure,
roles and responsibilities of concerned stakeholders, including
ministries, departments, industries and NGOs.
3. National and zonal/ regional level training institutions are
struggling for the resources (adequate manpower and
infrastructure). They need to be further upgraded; because right
now there are about 1864 MAH units, and there are many more SMEs
exist in the country.
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4. There is no standard database and inventorization at
national, state or district level, with reference to all chemical
entities and its expected Disaster Management(DM) requirements.
5. There are very few chemical (industrial) units in our
country, which have state of the art
technology with adequate safety margins (including the backup
systems and fail-safe material of construction). The advance
instrumentation like DCS (Distributed Control System) is also
essentially required , which can directly take corrective actions
without operating staff.
6. In India, there are no heavy penalty provisions for
defaulters of safety norms, usually the
defaulters get away with a meager penalty amount, which does not
encourage the safe environment. Generally, routine safety checks
are also not carried out seriously by agencies.
7. There are not enough budgets for safety provisions. Funds to
be earmarked for the activities to strengthen chemical disaster
management routed by respective departments/ entities.
8. The enforcement of Public Liability Insurance (PLI) Act is an
issue, which need to be
strengthened at the earliest. There is a serious lack of
awareness of existence and provisions of this act amongst
stakeholders. Further the statutory provisions to be strictly
implemented, and immediate relief under the PLI Act, needs to be
revisited.
9. Chemical disaster issues are looked after by Department of
Labour at state level, whereas at Central level, Ministry of
Environment & Forest is the nodal ministry under various
statutes and laws. In addition, there are other role players as
well, but looking at broadly we’ll find that it lacks multi
stakeholder involvement in policy making, planning and
implementation.
10. There is a big challenge in educating the stakeholders, and
providing appropriate training and developing their capacities.
There are no special courses for them. The standard “Material
Safety Data Sheets” (MSDS) are generally quite complex, which need
to be further simplified in vernacular language. It seems to be a
lack of coordination on knowledge exchange, training, capacity
building part. CIDM is not integrated with educational programmes
and professional courses.
11. Along the recent IT developments, geo informatics tools,
recent lessons, updated guidelines for the preparation of the
off-site emergency plan in synergy with District Disaster
Management Plan is a missing link. Moreover, offsite emergency
plans are not being adequately followed.
12. Natural disaster induced scenarios, including safe
structures, storages etc. are expected to be part of subsequent
planning and design concern, but it is adequately addressed.
13. Multi stakeholder partnership amongst the Government, local
administration, corporate/ industries, media, NGO and community is
not happening, which is actually the way forward, and effectively
contributes towards sustainability.
14. There are loopholes in dumping of hazardous chemical waste;
a number of industries are still dumping the hazardous waste in
surrounding vicinity, which can lead to many more Bhopal tragedy
like situations in India.
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15. There is also a need to evolve a national framework for
effective planning and monitoring of
CIDM in India. The short, medium and long term planning and
implementation modules on CIDM have to be produced and rigorously
followed, according to the requirements, infrastructure needs at
various levels and stages.
Proposed Measures:
To address this pertinent issue, following proposed safety
measures have to be taken into consideration:
A) Institutional measures are very crucial, in order to set the
tone of the entire process of chemical disaster management in
India, the following steps have to be taken up under it:
I) Devise a roadmap with action plan for institutionalization,
implementation and review of
National Guidelines onChemical Industrial Disaster Management,
developed by NDMA. The guidelines to be reviewed periodically.
While reviewing the same, the latest international conventions, the
changing global scenario and associated probable risks also to be
considered and addressed.
II) Comprehensive institutional mechanismfor unorganized sector,
to be devised by DGFASLI
with support from bodies like NSC, NIOH on the occupational
safety and health aspects. The focus should be on the localized
risks and behavior based safety, which can be emphasized through
analytical research,surveys and studies of this sector, also
involving the institutions.
III) Up gradation of specialized national, state level
institutesin the field of chemical industrial disaster management,
which can undertake training, capacity building, research,
consultancy and advocacy activities, in order to support the
Government and the entire chemical industry. Further at the zonal,
state level, specialized institutions with adequate capacity,
sufficient resources and upgraded infrastructure to be
institutionalized.
IV) Integration of State and District Disaster Management plans
on chemical (industrial) aspects, along with standard operating
procedures (SOPs), its inter linkage with state and district level
natural disaster management plan (DDMP), and regularization of the
same, in line with a comprehensive National level contingency
plan.
V) Medical Emergency Management Plan should be the inherent part
of the Onsite and the Offsite emergency plan. It should also
contain the list of toxicants and their hazardous effects,
availability of the antidotes, personal protective equipments
(PPEs), medical equipments and patient evacuation plan. The concept
of Mobile Hospitals to be promoted. Further, dedicated team of
medical experts to be made available to handle emergency pertaining
to CIDM.
B) Regulatory measures are actual drivers for implementation
& adherence of robust chemical disaster management mechanism in
the country. The following points needs to be addressed under
it:
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I) Adherence of the Off Site Emergency Plan is essential, as per
the MSIHC Rules 1989 Schedule 12. The district collector is
required to oversee, govern and update the offsite emergency plans
for industrial pockets, in consultation with all stakeholders. The
draft plan should be prepared by concerned Hazard units and
approved by district administration. The same should be rehearsed
at least once in a year in a required manner, through mock
drill.
II) Emergency Response Centers to be mandated (ERCs) under the
Chemical Accident Rules (EPPR), 1996. ERCs should be integrated
with medical, fire, civil defence, NDRF, SDRF, Police and emergency
responders, in order to cater to emergencies involving hazardous
chemicals.
III) Strict provisions to be made to penalize defaulter units.
In case of the non adherence of
Factories Act 1948, EP Act 1986, PLI Act 1991 and other allied
rules (like MSIHC, EPPR etc) and regulations pertaining to chemical
safety, prompt action to be taken against defaulters. Chemical
units which are dumping hazardous waste in unsafe manner also to be
penalized.
C) Preparedness Measures are highly critical, being the integral
part of the entire chemical disaster management process. These
measures play a very important role to address risk management on
the ground. The following points to be addressed under the
same:
i) Major Accident Hazard (MAH) units wise, a comprehensive Risk
Mapping has to be carried out.According to applicable risks to the
society, the hazardous chemicals category wise Standard Operating
Procedures (SOPs) have to be laid down at the district level
through District Crisis Group. Further at the sub district level,
specific guidelines to be issued and disseminated amongst
stakeholders through the Local Crisis Group.
ii) To optimize resources, a Comprehensive Disaster Management
Resource Network (DMRN) has to be developed, under which , a
database has to be maintained, which will provide location wise
inventory status of the available manpower (including volunteers),
equipments and other allied information. DRMN will supplement
initiative of Mutual Aid Response Group (MARG) in industrial
pockets and will also promote the concept of pooling of
resources.
iii) To strengthen existing capacities at district level, the
Emergency Operation Centers (EOCs) to be fully equipped, with all
required means of communication and coordination, during emergency
(including dissemination procedure of warning, contact list of
nodal persons).
iv) To educate different stakeholders (including plant
employees, field workers, NGOs, community representatives) specific
training modules to be developed on chemical disaster management.
Based on that, periodic training and retraining programmes to be
conducted.
D) Operational Measures:Looking at the current CIDM scenario in
India, it is clearly observed that operational measures, including
industrial (chemical) installations, storages and transportation of
hazardous chemicals and on site safety, are the prime areas of
concern. To address these crucial operational issues, the following
points to be addressed:
I) Industrial (chemical) installations and storages of hazardous
materials are highly critical. To address this pertinent issue, the
regular testing of critical equipments, HAZOP (Hazard
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operability), HAZAN (Hazard Analysis) studies to be carried out
for early identification of hazards. Further, subsequent action to
be taken to address the concerned issue.
II) For safer transport of hazardous chemicals (HAZCHEMs), the
MAH Units are recommended to follow certain procedures, prescribed
under the NDMA Guidelines. These guidelines cover specific
technical instructions for safe transportation of HAZCHEMs via
rail, road, air, marine or pipelines etc.
III) Land use planning considerations to be taken into account
while routing the hazardous substances through new pipelines, and
also prior to new construction in the vicinity of existing
pipelines. Further a Pipeline Management System (PMS) to be
implemented for better operational controls and monitoring purpose,
including pipeline inspection, functioning of equipments, periodic
audits and planning for emergencies.
IV) It is to be ensured that SMEs (small and medium enterprises)
dealing with hazardous
materials, generally located in periphery of urban cities,
should not exceed safety limit of buffer stock, of hazardous
chemicals. As this situation can lead to a potential chemical
disaster, because in these SMEs, normally safety mechanism is not
so stringent comparing to bigger organization or corporate.
E) Funding and Insurance Measures: Funding allocation is key to
address the institutional,
regulatory, operational and preparedness measures. Following key
points to be addressed under it:
I) Concerned Ministries need toearmarkfunds to strengthen
chemical disaster management activities in India. Ex: Funding
provisions to be made by one ministry, for institutionalizing of
chemical disaster management related national, state level
technical training institutes, resource allocation and further up
gradation & strengthening of the same, on priority.
II) Extend support towards preparation of exclusive disaster
management plans, Off site plans, provide trainings, conducting
mock drills in line with chemical aspects. Further, equipping
Emergency Operations Centers, DCGs, LCGs, inventorizationat
district& sub district level.
III) MAH installations are required to take third party
insurance under PLI Act, for providing relief to victims, in case
of chemical accident. Further, for carrying the hazardous
chemicals, the provision of insurance of driver, attendant and the
vehicle itself to be strictly adhered.
F). Building Sustainability through Multi stakeholder
Partnership:For real success of chemical disaster management, it is
essential to have a multi stakeholder partnership amongst partners.
After paradigm shift from relief centric approach to prevention,
preparedness and mitigation ,roles of all stakeholders have become
very crucial. The Government (including District Admin), Local
Community, NGOs, and Chemical Units (MAHs generally owned by the
corporate), all players have to come forward and work towards the
chemical safety.
In the recent past, a gap has been observed quite often between
chemical units and the local community. This needs to be addressed
at the earliest, for the safety of everyone. Here,
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especially the chemicals units should come out of their plant
shell, to sensitize the surrounding community and other
stakeholders. In general, NGOs are very near to common man as they
work with community at the grass root level, therefore NGOs
presentation in Local Crisis Group (LCG) is highly important to
bring issues on board, to the notice of Govt. (including district
level admin), Chemical units (corporate) and allied local agencies.
Finally, it is Government’s job to govern and oversee
implementation of chemical disaster management and the adherence of
regulatory mechanism, for safety and security of everyone, in line
with the same.
Major Responsibilities of Stakeholders for Management of
ChemicalIndustrial Disasters
1. Chemical (Industrial) Units: As part of major risk prone
units, these should specifically address the following-
(a) Units should adopt advance technology, which should include
Risk Mapping, testing of critical equipments, safe handling of
chemicals and periodic in-plant safety checks etc.
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(b) Comprehensive Emergency Plan to be prepared and followed
across plant, including roles & responsibilities of all
concerned.
(c) Address community safety rigorously, through initiatives
like Corporate Social Responsibility. Train the NGOs, community
representatives, nodal officers to deal with emergency
situations.
(d) All chemical hazardous units should take third party
insurance, to provide relief to victims. (e) Hazardous chemical
units should also have Business Continuity Planning (BCP) in place.
(f) Train and retrain employees and contract workers periodically,
on safety aspects.
2(a) Government: is the body, which governs the entire process,
should address the following- (a) Institutionalize CIDM process;
develop policies, guidelines for
effective emergency planning. (b) Oversee the adherence of
applicable laws, periodic reviews of
guidelines, acts & rules, devise mechanism for inspection of
risk prone units, and associated chemical safety parameters.
(c) Design programmes on CIDM awareness, push the chemical
units, and local authorities for the same.
(d) Funding provision for CIDM initiatives to maximize outreach,
allot budget for emergency centers.
2(b)District Authority: Being the nodal agency at unit level,
Distt. Authority should address following- (a) Responsible for
institutionalizing Emergency Plan. Various
departments and community, to be trained and equipped, to deal
with such disaster.
(b) Facilitate District & Local Crisis Group to strengthen
emergency preparedness, response.
(c) Equip Emergency Operation Centers to meet all communication
& coordination requirements. Optimize resources (manpower,
equipments) by maintaining Disaster Mgt. Resource Network.
(d) Institutionalize Govt initiatives for community awareness by
various communication means.
3. NGOs: have a very crucial role to play in CIDM. They should
address the following points – (a) Bring concerned safety issues of
community on board throughlocal platforms to Distt. Admin,and
chemical units. (b) Work in partnership with all stakeholders;
assist chemical units,
admin in community awareness (c) Assist chemical units and
Admin, in preparation and
implementation of emergency planning. (d) Get trained first, and
later sensitize schools, hospitals and
vulnerable communities, on CIDM.
4. Community: being the most vulnerable entity, should keep
notice of the following points – (a) Should follow the safety
precautions, recommended by chemical units,
Distt. Admin and NGOs. And provide support in volunteer
activities. (b) Form Citizens Task Force or similar groups, after
getting trained in
first aid, search & rescue, to deal emergency, including
early warning dissemination in vicinity by local communication
means
http://www.clipartguide.com/_pages/0511-0709-0620-2149.htmlhttp://www.clipartguide.com/_pages/0511-0703-0217-1509.html
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(c) Train other members back at home to deal with disaster
situation. (d) Report unsafe observations (like chemical spillage,
leakage, fire incident etc) to District/ Local
Crisis Group members/ NGOs/ RWAs or Police, in the vicinity. So,
apart from individual responsibilities of all the key stakeholders,
further by developing the multi stakeholder partnership amongst all
partners, through platforms such as District level and Local level
Crisis Groups, the sustainability of chemical industrial disaster
management can be enhanced further and last long, successfully and
effectively, for a safer tomorrow.
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