Tuticorin: A sulphuric acid leak was detected at a warehouse of the Sterlite copper plant in Tuticorin that the Tamil Nadu government closed in May following mass protests.
“There is no need to panic about the sulphuric acid leak as it is very minor and will be plugged,” district collector Sandeep Nanduri said.
He said the leak had had no impact on public health and urged people not to believe in rumors.
Nanduri added that state pollution control board experts, labor and revenue department officials, and police had inspected the warehouse and confirmed that a small quantity of sulphuric acid was leaking.
A protest by local people against the plant, which they accused of poisoning soil, water and air, turned violent on May 22, prompting police firing that killed 12. Another man died during protests the next day.
The state government later ordered “permanent closure” of the plant.
(Source: telegraphindia.com)