From www.timesofindia.com
Sunday July 16, 2000 Pvt fire stations get Maharashtra govt backing MUMBAI: Faced with a large number of potentially hazardous chemical units setting up shop in Mumbai, the Maharashtra government is encouraging private initiative for providing basic safety infrastructure. Private fire stations and fire brigade personnel prepare themselves to tackle any emergency situation while hazardous industries are tying up with private hospitals to treat workers injured in accidents. The companies are also increasingly coordinating with voluntary organisations to carry out rescue and relief exercises. "No government will be able to carry out complete rescue and relief operations in case of a major disaster," an official of the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health told IANS on condition of anonymity. The directorate, along with other government departments like the fire brigade and police, are working closely with the Mutual Aid Response Groups (MARG) set up by the industry. So far MARGs have been set up in Thane-Belapur and Trombay-Chembur areas, which have a high concentration of chemical industries. The Thane-Belapur Industries Association (TBIA), which is an umbrella body for thousands of hazardous and non-hazardous industries in the 28-km Thane-Belapur belt, has set up its own fire station. It has 37 fire tenders and two fire engines to tackle emergency situations. In addition, big chemical manufacturers in the area like NOCIL, Herdilla, Reliance Industries and Poly Olefins also have their own fire stations. "All of them are well integrated to react in case of an emergency," TBIA president Dinesh Parekh said. There was no community fire-fighting facility till TBIA set up the fire station in 1994. But the situation is worse when it comes to medical care in the vicinity of industrial areas. "The hospitals here are not equipped to handle any emergencies," said A.V.Shivshankaran, a US-trained safety engineer and a vocal campaigner for the Save New Bombay Committee. While the big companies have medical centres attached to their factories to cater to the needs of their employees, it is feared that none of them would be effective in case of a Bhopal-type tragedy. In Navi Mumbai, there are three medium hospitals and several smaller trauma centres. Despite the presence of hazardous industries, Navi Mumbai and Thane-Belapur have emerged as major residential areas. Incidentally, the first emergency services centre is taking shape at King Edward Memorial (KEM) hospital only now. Unlike in the present set-up, where a casualty medical officer examines a patient and calls for the appropriate experts, the emergency services centre would have all departments located centrally. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation-run hospital is spending Rs.30 million on the state-of-the-art centre. However, KEM hospital is located in south Mumbai, a long way off from Navi Mumbai and the Trombay-Chembur area. The state government's disaster management plan came apart on Wednesday following torrential rains in Mumbai. Members of the crisis management team from various government departments, who were supposed to meet to decide on relief strategy, could not even reach the secretariat due to traffic disruptions. Neither the industry nor citizens' bodies are happy with the state of affairs. The TBIA recently mooted the idea of an industrial township to manage the affairs of the Thane-Belapur area. "We will have our own hazard management system and we will be able to manage our own destiny," Parekh said.
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