Intelligence raids at Alang beach, 6000 toxic ships dumped so far
Date: Sun, Jul 22, 2012 at 4:35 PM
Subject: Intelligence Raids at Alang beach, 6000 toxic ships dumped so far
To: arunkr1967@indiatimes.com
Cc: dgceichzu@hotmail.com, rsecy@nic.in, chairmancbdt@nic.in, drihqrs@nic.in, driazu@nic.in
To
Shri A C Buck
Director General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI)
Union Ministry of Finance
Government of India
New Delhi
Through Shri Arun Kumar, Additional Commissioner, DGCEI
Subject- Intelligence raids at Alang beach, 6000 toxic ships dumped so far
This is with reference to the news report 'Dawood Ibrahim active in Alang ship-breaking business' (The Economic Times, 17 Jul, 2012, Ankur Jain & Arun Janardhanan),ࠦ#39;Intelligence sharing on Alang operations needed, say officials' (Ankur Jain, The Times of India July 18, 2012) and the notification of Director General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI) seeking change in system of invoicing by ship breakers at Alang, Gujarat to ensure more transparency. The Public Notice No. 01/2010 dated 26/7/2010 reveals non-transparency in the industrial activity at Alang beach. The document is attached. The White Paper on Black Money forgot to examine this unregulated industry that relies heavily on fake documents.
I wish to draw your attention towards the ship Exxon Valdez (now named MV Oriental N, IMO No. 8414520)ࠡfter being under the flag of USA and Marshall Islands, it took Panama flag. As per the last information, this vessel is under Sierra Leone flag. The atomic energy regulatory board has found 60 numbers of smooth detectors containing AM 241, a radioactive material. The provisional certificate of registry issued by the Republic of Sierra Leone shows that the vessel was granted permission for 㯮e single voyage from Singapore to Bhavnagar, India䮠The date of place and issue of the said certificate is at Cochin, India dated 04.04.2012 which is valid until 03.07.2012. This information is part of the records of the Supreme Court. It is apprehended that it is in Indian waters using fake documents.࠼br>
I submit that in an Office Memorandum No.29-3/2009-HSMD, Government of India, Ministry of Environment & Forests, (HSM Division) dated 9th May, 2011 relating to implementation of Supreme Court directions in respect of ship breaking activities, it has come to light that Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF)ⳠStanding Monitoring Committee (SMC) on Shipbreaking has suggested that since Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) and Customs were not able to verify the authenticity/genuineness of shipⳠregistry/flag in the fast in respect of some ships referred to them, this task in respect of each ship may be referred to the Directorate General Shipping, Ministry of Shipping ought to undertake such verification henceforth. The GMB officials informed MoEF that 㴨e suggestion of the committee is acceptable to them subject to such verification by DG Shipping is done within a period of 2 working days. If no information is received from the DG Shipping within 2 working days, it will be presumed that the certificate submitted is authentic and genuine.䠓uch presumption cannot be accepted as it will amount to acceptance of a fake document.
I submit that international crime syndicates worldwide are earning an estimated US$22-31 billion annually from hazardous waste dumping, smuggling proscribed hazardous materials, and exploiting and trafficking protected natural resources as per INTERPOL documents.ࠉt
is apprehended that ship breaking has some relationship with this syndicate. A report 'India's shipbreaking industry controlled by organised crime' refers to the involvement of one of Forbes' world's top 10 most dreaded criminals list of 2011. The shipbreaking yards at in Alang beach has virtually devastated the sea and fishes with pollution.
I submit that parliamentary committee on coal and steel headed by Shri Kalyan Banerjee and the other parliamentary committee on transport headed by Shri Sitaram Yechury are looking into the issue of how many of these ships continue to enter Indian waters on false documents thereby also raising issues of national security.
I submit that no action has been taken so far to plug the existing the loop holes.
Subject: Intelligence Raids at Alang beach, 6000 toxic ships dumped so far
To: arunkr1967@indiatimes.com
Cc: dgceichzu@hotmail.com, rsecy@nic.in, chairmancbdt@nic.in, drihqrs@nic.in, driazu@nic.in
To
Shri A C Buck
Director General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI)
Union Ministry of Finance
Government of India
New Delhi
Through Shri Arun Kumar, Additional Commissioner, DGCEI
Subject- Intelligence raids at Alang beach, 6000 toxic ships dumped so far
This is with reference to the news report 'Dawood Ibrahim active in Alang ship-breaking business' (The Economic Times, 17 Jul, 2012, Ankur Jain & Arun Janardhanan),ࠦ#39;Intelligence sharing on Alang operations needed, say officials' (Ankur Jain, The Times of India July 18, 2012) and the notification of Director General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI) seeking change in system of invoicing by ship breakers at Alang, Gujarat to ensure more transparency. The Public Notice No. 01/2010 dated 26/7/2010 reveals non-transparency in the industrial activity at Alang beach. The document is attached. The White Paper on Black Money forgot to examine this unregulated industry that relies heavily on fake documents.
I wish to draw your attention towards the ship Exxon Valdez (now named MV Oriental N, IMO No. 8414520)ࠡfter being under the flag of USA and Marshall Islands, it took Panama flag. As per the last information, this vessel is under Sierra Leone flag. The atomic energy regulatory board has found 60 numbers of smooth detectors containing AM 241, a radioactive material. The provisional certificate of registry issued by the Republic of Sierra Leone shows that the vessel was granted permission for 㯮e single voyage from Singapore to Bhavnagar, India䮠The date of place and issue of the said certificate is at Cochin, India dated 04.04.2012 which is valid until 03.07.2012. This information is part of the records of the Supreme Court. It is apprehended that it is in Indian waters using fake documents.࠼br>
I submit that in an Office Memorandum No.29-3/2009-HSMD, Government of India, Ministry of Environment & Forests, (HSM Division) dated 9th May, 2011 relating to implementation of Supreme Court directions in respect of ship breaking activities, it has come to light that Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF)ⳠStanding Monitoring Committee (SMC) on Shipbreaking has suggested that since Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) and Customs were not able to verify the authenticity/genuineness of shipⳠregistry/flag in the fast in respect of some ships referred to them, this task in respect of each ship may be referred to the Directorate General Shipping, Ministry of Shipping ought to undertake such verification henceforth. The GMB officials informed MoEF that 㴨e suggestion of the committee is acceptable to them subject to such verification by DG Shipping is done within a period of 2 working days. If no information is received from the DG Shipping within 2 working days, it will be presumed that the certificate submitted is authentic and genuine.䠓uch presumption cannot be accepted as it will amount to acceptance of a fake document.
I submit that international crime syndicates worldwide are earning an estimated US$22-31 billion annually from hazardous waste dumping, smuggling proscribed hazardous materials, and exploiting and trafficking protected natural resources as per INTERPOL documents.ࠉt
is apprehended that ship breaking has some relationship with this syndicate. A report 'India's shipbreaking industry controlled by organised crime' refers to the involvement of one of Forbes' world's top 10 most dreaded criminals list of 2011. The shipbreaking yards at in Alang beach has virtually devastated the sea and fishes with pollution.
I submit that parliamentary committee on coal and steel headed by Shri Kalyan Banerjee and the other parliamentary committee on transport headed by Shri Sitaram Yechury are looking into the issue of how many of these ships continue to enter Indian waters on false documents thereby also raising issues of national security.
I submit that it is quite significant that Directorate
of Revenue Intelligence that functions under the Central Board of
Excise and Customs in the Ministry of Finance took note of "problems
such as import of hazardous substances that will occupy centre stage in
the future as the emerging global threats."
I
wish to draw your attention towards the news item 'Customs seize Greek
vessel at Alang for under-invoicing' (The Times of India, September 15,
2011). A Greek vessel 'Syros' was seized off Alang coast which was
brought for salvaging. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
I
also wish to draw your attention towards 'Pirates' scare hits Alang'
(The Times of India, Vijaysinh Parmar, July 13, 2012). It has come to
light that watchman of one of the ship beaking plots on Alang beach
Sitaram Devmurari was killed on June 28, 2012.
In
such a context, the notification assumes huge significance as it will
end up helping systematic quantification of material flow and help
detect and segregate goods of hazardous nature.
I wish to draw your attention towards the 23rd December, 2010, Press Note (attached) issued by Mr Raju, Commissioner, Central Excise, Bhavnagar referring
to 㠡 number of cases of Revenue leakage in Alang against Ship Breakers
of Alang, who fraudulently passed on Cenvat Credit worth crores of
Rupees. They were also not showing production, clearance, transportation
and Service Tax related information in their statutory records. The
investigations are going on and some notices have been issued by ADG
(CEI). In order to curb these malpractices, the Public Notice No.
02/2010 was issued on 13.12.2010 by the Central Excise Commissionerate,
Bhavnagar. The public notice requires them to maintain certain records
which would make it difficult for those who choose to evade duties by
clandestine clearances.䠼br>
I
submit that the Press Note says, 㡲ound 100-150 persons came to Central
Excise, Head Quarters office, Bhavnagar and informed that they were from
the Alang Ship Breaking Association䬠㴨ey continued
shouting slogans and fearing damage to public property, and a as matter
of abundant precaution, police force was called to ensure peace and
security of the Government office䮠
In such a backdrop, it appears that under pressure due to strike, DGCEI
decided to put the notification seeking change in system of invoicing
by the ship breakers for transparency, in abeyance for one month after
the intervention of Chief Commissioner, Ahmedabad.
In
view of the recent news reports based on credible security concerns,
any amendment in the notification or delay in the enforcement of the
notification of 13.12.2010 compromises national interest.
I submit that most ship breakers are law abiding and they support this notification.
I
am an applicant in the related matter of ship breaking and the illegal
entry and anchorage of ex-US Ship Exxon Valdez is listed for hearing in
the Supreme Court on 23rd July, 2012.
It
is noteworthy that Office of the Commissioner of Central Excise &
Service Tax, Bhavnagar, Department of Revenue, Union Ministry of Finance
issued on 26/7/2010, a Public Notice No. 01/2010 saying, ㉴ has been
brought to the notice of this Commissionerate that the Ship Breaking
Units situated in Alang, Sosiya and other areas falling within its
jurisdiction are not issuing their Central Excise invoices by declaring
correct value and description of the scrap, plates etc generated as a
result of their manufacturing activities. Investigations recently
initiated by Director
General of Central Excise Intelligence, Ahmedabad Zonal Unit revealed
that the documentation and procedures followed by the ship breaking
units are suffering from several infirmities resulting in substantial
loss of Government Revenue.䠼br>
As
per power conferred under Central Excise Rules, 2002, it said, ぬl ship
breaking units are directed to discontinue their present system of
mentioning general description of ship breaking materials in their
invoices. They should declare the correct and full description of the
goods...伯span>
༯span>
It was indeed quite a matter of satisfaction that for the first time since 14th
October, 2003, in compliance of the Supreme Court order, this Public
Notice sought proper inventory saying, 㓨ip breaking units are also
directed that as soon as they complete dismantling and clearance of
materials obtained from each imported ship, vessel or any other floating
structure, they should submit a statement to the jurisdictional Range
Superintendent indicating the LDT of the imported ship, nature of the
imported ship [cargo, passenger, tanker etc], total quantity of scrap of
each metal obtained and cleared, total quantity of plates of each metal
and different sizes [thickness] obtained and cleared, total quantity of
each item of non-excisable goods obtained and cleared [wood, furniture,
old engine, machinery, stores etc.], and the percentage difference of
total weight of goods and materials obtained and cleared vis-a-vis the
LDT of the imported ship etc.伯span>
I
submit that the four-day-long strike by ship breakers at Alang happened
to protest this notification asking for a ship-wise break-up of
material obtained from dismantled vessels. The notification was issued
in July 2010 and ship-breakers were asked to periodically submit details
of excisable and non-excisable items obtained from the ships they bring
for scraping. Ship-breakers were told to maintain ship-to-ship stock
register. At present, ship-breakers submit details goods-wise, and not
ship-wise. The
notification was issued after a multi-crore excise duty evasion
''racket'' at Alang came to light. The ship breakers were allegedly
hiding value addition to scrap and were inflating the quantity of items
exempted from excise duty. The strike ended on 31st
December, 2010 evening after the representatives of ship-breakers met
officials of central excise and other departments. The work at Alang
yard was resumed on 1st January, 2011. Ship breaking at Alang came to a halt on December 21, 2010 remained suspended for four days in protest of the notification. ࠠࠠ
I submit that the Inter-ministerial Committee (IMC) on Ship breaking, Union Ministry of Steel noted in the minutes of its meeting dated 17th September, 2010 that
㼯b>The Coast Guard representative brought out some security concerns
and incidents of communication sets from ships reportedly finding their
way to the local fisherman. It was advised to the Ship recyclers to
ensure that such equipment are immediately destroyed by the Customs as
per the prescribed procedures. The Chairman also advised the Naval,
Coast Guard and GMB to regularly interact as per the decisions taken in
the earlier IMC meetings and to resolve the major security issues in the
Coastal Security Committee meetings conducted at the State Level.䠉n its
minute dated 4th February 2009, the IMC noted the Security Concerns, saying, 㼯span>Both
the representative of the Coast Guard and the representative from Naval
HQ raised concerns over the entry of ships carrying hazardous cargo to
Alang for ship breaking and how no information is made available to them
regarding the movement of ships to Alang. Besides this there was no
information regarding whether the Alang Port is compliant with the
International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. In the
context of the present security concerns in the country, the Chairman
advised the representative of the Ministry of Shipping, the GMB
officials, the Coast Guard representative and the Naval HQs to address
the issue expeditiously so that the security gaps are taken care of and
also to verify whether the port at Alang has implemented the ISPS codes.
The Coast Guard representative and the Naval HQ representative also
expressed apprehensions that the vessels coming in for beaching
sometimes ply very close to the oil rigs, which could be a potential for
accidents.䠉t also mentions that the Chairman of the IMC 㤩rected that
the Ministry of Shipping may organize a meeting on the matter with GMB,
Naval HQ and Coast Guard HQ, Custom etc. immediately and ensure that
gaps in the security frame-work issues are addressed immediately.䠼br>
I submit that no action has been taken so far to plug the existing the loop holes.
I
submit that if the notification is enforced it will address some of the
concerns of the IMC. On the issue of radioactive materials, IMC
observes, 㒥garding report of a huge quantity of Smoke Detectors
containing radioactive material lying in the Plots at Alang, the AERB
informed that due to large volume of non-radioactive materials contained
in the smoke detectors, it is difficult for them to accept the material
in the present shape for disposal at the BARC facility.䠔he issue
remains unresolved so far.
I
submit that in the case of ex-Exxon Valdez ship, admittedly 60
radioactive material containing smoke detectors have been found. This
merits examination.
I
submit that even as the Union Steel Ministry has failed to prepare the
Code on Regulations for Safe and Environmentally Sound Ship Recycling
prepared in compliance of the Supreme Court's order dated September 6,
2007 to improve the situation, death toll of migrant workers from Bihar,
UP, Jharkhand and Orissa in Alang keeps on rising. It underlines the
fact of non-improvement of situation on the Alang beach.
I
submit that on December 9, 2011 Bajrangi Jha (35) was killed at Alang.
Such deaths are a routine affair. In 2011 alone 28 workers got killed on
Alang beach due to the criminal callousness of ship owners, ship
breakers, Gujarat Maritime Board and other concerned agencies. The
inquiries in such deaths are never made public.࠼br>
I
submit that Alang coast is a litmus test for governmentⳠsensitivity
towards countryⳠenvironmental borders in which it has failed miserably
so far.
I
submit that foreign entities like Japanese Ship-owners' Association and
US Maritime Adiminstration are encouraged by lax regulatory regime at
Alang beach. They are in the process of turning Alang's 170 ship
breaking plots on the beach, spread over a 10 km stretch into a disposal
ground for their hazardous wastes and end-of-life vessels.
༯span>
I
submit that while such state of affairs prevails, more than 6000
end-of-life ships have been dismantled without complying with financial,
environmental and occupational health regulations since
1983. The theft of excise duty has also been going on since then. The
quantum of black money generated in this industry ought to be
ascertained besides enforcing the notification.
In
view of the above, to begin with I urge you to examine the authenticity
of all the papers submitted by ex-Exxon Valdez else it will set a bad
precedent and open the flood gates for such vessels in Indian waters
with impunity.
Thanking You
Yours Faithfully
Gopal Krishna
ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA)
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