Speaking to reporters, KIOCL Chairman and Managing Director S. Murari said on Monday that he had personally led a team directors on a site visit to inspect the damage, following a notice issued by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB). ``We have filed an interim response that there has been a leakage, and the plant has immediately stopped transporting the slurry,'' he added.
Murari said an estimated 4,000 tonne of slurry worth had flown out of the pipe into the surrounding area. ``We think the hole must be small, as if there is a bigger leakage, the indicators at our plant would have shown different pressure levels,'' he outlined.
On an average, the company sends about 16 batches of nearly 20,000 tonnes of slurry for loading at the Mangalore port. ``Since we were not sure about the mining lease, we have already stocked sufficient amount to load the existing ships at Mangalore. The ships will not pile up at the port because we have stopped the slurry transportation,'' Murari said.
The KIOCL CMD said work had started to fix the hole in the pipe, which was located about 8 to 10 meters below ground level. ``We have hired a contractor to dig the passage to the leakage point. We estimate that the work will take about 4 weeks. We will fix a pipe-clamp which will plug the gap for another five months, after which we will replace the pipe,'' he added.
Murari said there was no danger of the slurry causing any environmental damage, as iron-ore was a natural element and did not have any poisonous impact.