It's leak of chilli substance, says PCB

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, OCT. 21. The pungent substance that hung in the air causing irritation to the eyes and noses of people in some parts of the city on Friday evening has been identified as ``chilli oleoresin oil'' by the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB).

The oil was being transported in a 30-litre jerry can in a Swaraj Mazda No. 10T 5084 by Dilip Road Lines booked on behalf of M/s Naturite Agro Products Ltd., Shamirpet. The jerry can broke while it was being transshipped from Secunderabad to its godown at S. V. Co-op Industrial Estate, Balanagar.

A lot of this oleoresin oil leaked near Divyashakthi Apartments at Ameerpet due to slow movement of the vehicles caught in heavy traffic, Dr. V. P. Jauhari, Principal Secretary, Environment, Forest, Science and Technology, said in a press release quoting a report from the APPCB.

It may be recalled that panic had gripped several areas of Hyderabad on Friday as people suddenly began gasping for breath together with irritation in eyes and nose. A gas leak or spillage of a chemical substance under transportation was suspected. The police had found traces of some powder spilled on the road in the Ameerpet area.

The symptoms of gasping, sneezing and coughing began around 5.40 p.m. and the offending gas hung in the air for well over five hours, leaving people terrified. Scores of people rushed to hospitals seeking medical aid.

Mr. Jauhari said the vehicle and the jerry can had been seized by officials of the APPCB and handed over to the police. It was also taking steps to prosecute the industry and the transporter. There was no hazardous chemical or gas leak, he added.

Earlier, Mr. Tishya Chatterjee, Member-Secretary of the APPCB, told presspersons that the tanker carrying the ``concentrated chilli extract'' in a liquid form from Secunderabad to Shamirpet leaked at Ameerpet, releasing an acrid smell. The vehicle was traced at 10.30 a.m. and confiscated by the board and the police.

He said action against the transporter, the source of the extract and its recipient, both of which happen to be agro- product industries, would be taken under the Motor Vehicle Act and the Environmental Protection Act. Though the substance was pungent causing burning sensation in the eyes, it was ``harmless''.

On Friday evening, when samples of the substance that fell on the road were collected, it was initially thought to be formaldehyde. But the results of the tests at the APPCB laboratory showed that the substance was ``chilli extract''. The liquid from the tanker turned into powder when it fell on the road.

Mr. Chatterjee said the mystery behind the smell was solved within 18 hours, which was ``phenomenal''. ``We have traced and confiscated the vehicle, identified the substance and we know the names of the source and where it is being taken.'' All this was possible because of a Task Force team of the board that swung into action, collected samples and performed analysis.

Responding to questions, he said recurrence of obnoxious smell from a leaking tanker cannot be ruled out, as long as the tankers are allowed to ply indiscriminately in the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority limits. At best, the Task Force can conduct random checks.

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