Ahmedabad: A large scale national pollution response exercise meant for combating oil spills at sea which when unchecked causes severe damage to marine wealth, will be conducted off Mundra in the Gulf of Kutch on December 21 and 22 under the aegis of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) which is designated as the Central Coordinating Authority for combating marine oil spills.

The exercise code named NATPOLREX-VI is scheduled to be conducted in two phases viz Table Top Exercise, where the delegates plan and prepare the strategy and in the second phase, the actual sea response scenario will be created. During the exercise various events are planned, which include the Oil spill assessment, mobilisation of resource, offshore oil spill response by preventive booming, application of OSD through ICG ships, IAF Aircraft(C-130 J), OSVs, Tugs, CG Dornier, CG Helo, near shore protection of port by Mundra/Tugs/Craft and resource mobilisation by the State Govt/Local Administration, Defence spokesperson Wing Commander Abhishek Matiman today said.

“Moreover, the ICG will also position specialised Pollution response teams and the newly inducted Pollution Control Vessels (PCVs), showcasing various booms to contain the anticipated areas of spill, use of specialised collecting/segregating equipment like skimmers and disposal equipment like Dracon Barges. The Indian Coast Guard shall also be deploying their aerial and other afloat assets for spray of Oil spill dispersant. This exercise shall also envisage involvement of agencies viz, INCOIS, ISRO and NIO in marine oil spill response system,’ he informed.

The Defence spokesperson said that ICG is designated as the Central Coordinating Authority for combating marine oil spills at sea by the Govt. of India. In order to meet its functional requirement, the Coast Guard felt the need of synergy among various stakeholders to ensure effective planning and smooth conduct of Pollution Response Operation. Such synergy is being achieved through National Plan for Oil Spill Disaster Contingency at sea (NOS-DCP) promulgated in July 1996 and is being regularly validated by conduct of Annual National Pollution Response Exercise and audit of the oil handlers and resource agencies capabilities. The Sixth Edition of the exercise, Code named NATPOLREX-VI, is being conducted off Mundra in Gulf of Kutch this time around.

Domestic production of oil and further transportation by ships and through pipelines over sea, poses a high risk of oil spill in Indian waters for varied reasons, causing severe damage to the rich marine wealth, which is the lifeline for many people staying close to Coasts. This necessitated exercising the Oil response capabilities of the nation through NATPOLREX-VI in Gulf of Kutch, under the aegis of the Director General Indian Coast Guard (DGICG), to check the efficacy of the various stakeholders, he said.

Flag Officers of the Indian Coast Guard and heads of resource agencies are expected to be present on the D-day. Acknowledging the importance of the operation in the gulf of Kutch, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, has consented to overview the operation, Mr Matiman said.

DeshGujarat