Paradip, Orissa.

Present Status

This factory commenced production in January 2000 and has been a continuous source of pollution in the area. It has affected the health of Paradip residents and people in nearby villages of Batighar, Jamboo and Kharnasi.

Most of the directives stipulated by the Pollution Control Board have been violated. Scientific studies conducted by local groups have found high levels of toxins in the waterways. The factory has been discharging effluents like phosphor-gypsum, which contains radioactive radium 226, radon and fluorine at abnormally high levels into the Mahanadi. The waste also contains sulphuric acid and sulphur dust, a poisonous chemical that gets widely dispersed around Paradip town because of an open conveyor belt system.

Gas leakages, reminiscent of Bhopal, are part of a reality the community has had to live with for the past 4-5 years. Breathlessness and respiratory disorders are common amongst children in this area. Residents from the villages of Rajnagar, Satbhaya and Tantiapal of Bhitarkanika have complained that whenever the unit discharges its effluents into the Mahanadi, the water becomes discoloured and people feel a burning sensation. Incidents of dead fish found in the river have been on the rise, even as far away as Barunai and Satbhaya villages, both of which are inside the limits of the Gahirmata Sanctuary.

A thick crust of phosphor-gypsum has settled on the riverbed near the mouth, preventing the seasonal migration of Hilsa fish in the river for the past two years. Fishermen from the fishing villages located near the Mahanadi river mouth have been complaining about a drastic fall in fish catch, since the last three years, due to pollution from this unit. Close to 1,500 hectares of agricultural land has been rendered fallow in the adjoining areas.

The discharges flow into the Mahanadi river whose mouth is near the Paradip port. Currents moving northwards in the winter carry the contaminants to the Gahirmata Marine Sanctuary, which is located just 10 kms from the river mouth. This area is the world’s largest breeding and nesting ground for the endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles. The continued discharge of effluents by this plant would severely impact the turtle habitat as well.