10 Management of Chemical & Industrial Disasters in India

Prof. Masood A Siddiqui

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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:

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 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, 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

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.

(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.

(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

(d) Get trained first, and later sensitize schools, hospitals and vulnerable communities, on CIDM.

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

(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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References

Chemical (Industrial) Disaster Management Guidelines, National Disaster Management Authority, Govt. of India (NDMA), April 2007
Chemical Industrial Disaster Management, FICCI Journal, Annual Edition, 2011
Down to Earth, Indian Science and Environment Fortnightly, October 1, 2011
DEEKSHA, Quarterly Development Journal, October – December, 2012
Training Module on Chemical Industrial Disaster Management, National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), Govt of India, 2012
Chemical Industrial Disaster Management, FICCI Journal, Annual Edition, 2013
Geography and You, International Edition on Industrial Safety and Disaster Management, March April, 2014
National Action Plan on Chemical Industrial Disaster Management (NAP-CIDM), By Ministry of Environment & Forests and NDMA, Govt of India, 2015
National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) , May 2016, , National Disaster Management Authority, Govt. of India (NDMA)
RED BOOK, Annual Edition, By Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC), 2016
Industrial Safety Chronicle, Quarterly Technical Journal by National Safety Council, Mumbai
Kaleidoscope (Bi Monthly) on Chemical Industrial Scenario of India by CPSEs, SCOPE, May 2013
POL Tanker Guidelines, By National Disaster Management Authority, Govt of India (NDMA), 2010