BMC will provide gas detector balloons to trace leakages

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) decided to provide gas detector balloons at every ward and fire brigade station. They've also decided to install a GPS system in harmful gas transport tankers and introduced training in disaster management workshop to tackle the gas leakage issue in the future. Concerned authorities will have a meeting at BMC on Friday to discuss the report submitted and the measures to be undertaken.

After the incident where there was an intense gaseous smell on September 19, the BMC called for the meeting of concerned authorities like Disaster Management Cell, Mumbai Fire Brigade, Mumbai Police, Rashtriya Chemical Fertilisers, Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health, Mahanagar Gas Ltd, BPCL and HPCL. Dr Ashwini Joshi, additional commissioner of the BMC, formed the committee of authorities to submit the report on the source of gas leakages and measures to tackle such situations in future. The committee was supposed to file its report on September 26 and then October 1. But the meeting was postponed two times and it finally took place on Friday. Though the source of the smell has not been detected, concerned authorities suggested various measures.

According to the Public Information Officer, the various measures were discussed in the meeting. Ashwini Joshi instructed Mumbai Fire Brigade to buy and provide gas detector balloons at every ward and fire brigade station to detect the gas. As of now, the city has an Air Quality Index (AQI) system where only sulphur oxide (SOx), nitrogen oxide (NOx), carbon oxide (COx) and Particulate Matter (PM10) can be detected. The new system will detect more gases.

In addition to that, GPS and monitoring system will be made mandatory for the harmful gas carrying vehicles to detect its route. Joshi ordered that drivers and assistant of gas transport vehicles be trained to tackle gas leakages situation in the workshop for disaster management.

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