‘Oil exploration technology reduces fish catch’

Fishing community demands Rs 500-crore compensation from ONGC

The fishing community has claimed that the ‘Seismic blast technology’ allegedly used by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) to explore oil deposits inside the sea bed off the Mumbai coast has caused 32 dolphins to wash up on the seas from Dahanu to Worli and drastically reduced the fish catch in the past three months.

It has demanded that ONGC give a compensation of Rs 500 crore to the fishing communities along Dahanu, Palghar, Vasai and Mumbai. “Due to ONGC’s survey using the highly damaging seismic blast technology, we haven’t been able to catch fish. Usually, a boat with 25 fishermen makes a business of Rs 20 lakh or more during these months.

However, this time, several had to return to the shore with hardly any catch. Should the fishing communities sacrifice their livelihood and existence for the ‘national interest’ of finding oil? Does the government want us to be the next suicide community, like the farmers?” said Damodar Tandel, president of the Akhil Maharashtra Machhimar Kriti Samiti.

Vasai corporator Sanjay Koli alleged that fishermen are constantly subjected to new restrictions around the oil rig. Moreover, they have to maintain a ‘safe’ distance from the surveying boats that have seismic blast technology, Koli added. Citing a US Department of the Interior assessment, Tandel pointed out that the sound waves from these blasts are expected to injure and kill 1,38,500 whales and dolphins along the East coast and “disrupt vital marine mammal behaviour”.

ONGC officials, however, said that the seismic tests are conducted worldwide for offshore oil exploration. “At all ONGC units, we use safe exploration practices which meet global standards. We take all precaution and safety measures, as far as the environment is concerned,” said an ONGC spokesperson.

mumbai.newsline@expressindia.com

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