VADODARA, JAN 31: They prowl the city streets with misplaced arrogance; they dare you to approach them and, when you get too close, they knock you out of the way. They have been known to kill; they more commonly injure. And they haven't yet unleashed their maximum damage.They are the tankers that carry chemicals, petroleum products and gases from the many refineries and chemical units surrounding the city to places all over the country. More than 2,000 tankers carrying 12,000 to 15,000 litre explosives each every day. And, ironically, the city is off limits to these tankers under Section 33 (1) (B) of Bombay Police Act and the Explosives Rules of the central government.Around 100-150 people die every year, and many more sustain injuries, in related accidents around Vadodara. In the past few months, accidents involving tankers have claimed several lives just beyond city limits. Ten people were killed when an LPG tanker exploded near Ranoli; around the same time, four rabaris were killed, along with 50-odd sheep and five cows, after a tanker carrying ammonia gas skidded off the highway between Vasad and Anand and sprung a leak. Two persons were injured last fortnight when a tanker carrying an unidentified petroleum product exploded in Makarpura.All these took place in relatively wide, open spaces. The fallout of such accidents in congested areas such as the walled city or even the Palace Road could be disastrous, agree sources in the Department of Explosives, traffic police, Regional Transport Office and the transport business. A tankerful of ammonia could devastate an area of one square kilometre.And the possibility of such damage is real. Around 11,000 tankers are registered in Vadodara to ferry petroleum products, lethal industrial gases and other explosives like calcium carbide; also registered are 1,200 static mobile pressure vessels and 220 explosive (dynamite, detonators) vans. You can see many of these in crowded areas almost every day.What's worse, say sources, is that most drivers of these vehicles neither know the name of the explosive nor possess any training to man the machine (vehicle) or situation in an untoward event.Not surprisingly, the authorities seem to be least bothered. Assistant commissioner of police (Traffic) A R Munshi, regional transport officer M Hemawat, and Gujarat Safety Council chief P T Shah, admit to the problem and to the fact that they have done precious little to salvage it.P Panneervel, state commissioner (Transport) also admits that the situation is frustrating. ``My department has been writing to both truckers and institutes like the Council though the end-product has been poor. I can only keep stressing the need and the truckers' personal interest in safeguarding their men and machines'', he says.There is a plan, he says, to deal with the situation; he will intensify awareness among the truck operators and ask officials to tighten their belts simultaneously. However, he hasn't set a deadline for this.And then there's the familiar game of buck-passing. Tankers' Association officials Harish Navani, Ravindra Shah and R Mishra admit that the response from truckers has been poor, but say the key to the situation lies with the government.
