Visakhapatnam West MLA P.G.V.R. Naidu has appealed to Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney to either get the LG Polymers plant at RR Venkatapuram closed or shifted to an industrial area as the company management had violated all norms and caused extensive damage to nature, public and the country.
In a letter to the Chief Secretary, the MLA noted that the harmful chemical styrene could have long-term side effects beyond the immediate symptoms. There is no safe limit for exposure to it, he said referring to reports. While appreciating the immediate announcement of compensation to the affected persons, he appealed to the Chief Secretary to keep in mind that thousands of people would have to suffer long-term side effects of exposure to the leak. They all need to be generously compensated and taken care of.
He also demanded a probe into the negligence on part of the plant officials and fix the culpability forthwith in order to do justice to the bereaved families. He noted that allowing the plant to continue in the same location even after the ghastly incident is tantamount to allowing people to sit on a tinder box. The factory, located in the limits of the GVMC, also houses other chemicals (pentane C5 H12) in tankers in the same facility. The area, surrounding the industry, has a domestic water supply reservoir and a small scale dairy. Two other similar manufacturing plants in India, are not located in residential areas and hence this plant should be shifted to an industrial cluster and land could be used as a public zone for tram/metro parking.
