Nagapattinam oil leak continues, fishermen to lay siege to CPCL office on March 8
Although officials of the CPCL had on Saturday evening told media persons that the leak was entirely contained, locals on Sunday spotted leaked oil off the Nagapattinam coast.
Published: 06th March 2023 06:33 AM | Last Updated: 06th March 2023 06:33 AM | A+A A-
Since Thursday night, oil has been leaking from the CPCL pipeline which spans along villages of Nagore Pattinacherry and Samanthampettai in Nagapattinam | Express
NAGAPATTINAM: A day after officials assured of plugging a leak encountered after a pipeline of the Chennai Petrol Corporation Limited (CPCL) in Panangudi, Nagapattinam, developed cracks on Thursday night, more spillage was reported in the ruptured pipeline on Sunday. Riled up by the incident, fisherfolk representatives have called for a strike to beseige the company’s base in Panangudi on March 8.
Since Thursday night, oil has been leaking from the pipeline which spans along the villages of Nagore Pattinacherry and Samanthampettai. The oil leak had spilt over to a few hamlets to the south of Nagore Pattinacherry.
Efficiency tests on the pipeline were carried out on Saturday. Although officials of the CPCL had on Saturday evening told media persons that the leak was entirely contained, locals on Sunday spotted leaked oil off the Nagapattinam coast.
With the prolonged leakage affecting normal life in the fishing hamlets, the officials of the CPCL had assured to remove the pipeline soon after an ongoing industrial expansion project. Meanwhile, representatives of fisherfolk communities in Akkaraipettai and other panchayats led a meeting in a temple in Nagore Pattinacherry on Sunday evening.
“The leak has poured out to other villages and is no longer restricted to one village. Day after day, it is affecting the people. Hence, we are declaring a strike on March 8,” said R Soundarapandiyan, a fisherfolk representative from Akkaraipettai.
