Indain Express 17.08.2010
Fish samples show no contamination, yet a word of caution
Express News Service Tags : oil spill, mumbai fish contmination, mumbai Posted: Tue Aug 17 2010, 00:01 hrs
Mumbai: Samples of local fish from municipal markets have shown no contamination following this month’s oil spill in the sea, but the BMC still advised citizens to be cautious when they buy such fish.“Of the 92 municipal markets, 52 sell fish. We collected 138 samples from 30 markets that were close to the shore but none showed any contamination,” said Deepak Kamat, assistant commissioner in charge of markets. The samples included Bombay Duck, Mandeli and red prawns; the test conducted is called thin layer chromatography.
The fishing community protested against the advisory on caution. Bharati Worlikar, member of the Maharshtra Machchimar Vikas Sangh, said business has suffered. “Fishing is not allowed between June 10 and August 15. The local fish we sell during this period is usually what we had caught before June 10 and put in cold storage. How can those samples be contaminated? The BMC’s advisory has affected our livelihood,” she said.
Kamat said the samples collected were of fish caught illegally between August 7 and August 10. “Our advisory was aimed at ensuring there is no threat to public’s health. It was our responsibility to let people know the samples have tested negative. Fish-eaters can decide for themselves whether they want to eat local fish,” said Kamat.
Of the fish sold in city markets, 90 per cent is from other states such as Orissa, Karnataka and Gujarat. Only small fish are caught and sold locally.
THE SPILL AND AFTER
FISH: No contamination found in 138 samples of local fish taken from municipal markets. BMC says samples were of fish caught after spill, fishing community says these were from stock caught earlier. In any case, most fish in markets come from outside.
ENVIRONMENT: Unless action is taken immediately, harmful chemicals could remain on shore for years and have long-term, irreversible effects on environment, warns Dr Banwari Lal, director of TERI’s environmental and industrial biotechnical division.
SALVAGE: Loose cargo being transported under Customs supervision, sealed cargo being handled by shipping company.
COLLISION: Captain of MV Khalijia III, one of the ships involved in the collision that caused the spill, files for anticipatory bail. Earlier, captain of the other ship, MSC Chitra, too had filed plea and got interim bail.
