By The Hindu Bureau
Copyright thehindu
The Kerala High Court has reduced the security amount that has to be paid by the owners of MSC Elsa 3, a container vessel that sank off the Kerala coast on May 25, from ₹9,531 crore to ₹1,227.62 crore.
This is a modification of its order of July 7 in an admiralty suit filed by the State government, following which its sister vessel MSC Akiteta-2 had been detained at Vizhinjam.
The government had claimed ₹9,531 crore as compensation, mainly for the marine and coastal pollution and the loss caused to fishers following the sinking of the ship, following which the court had ordered the conditional arrest of its sister vessel till the compensation amount was paid.
Of this, ₹8,626.12 crore was claimed towards compensation for the damage caused by the sunken vessel to the environment and ₹378.48 crore towards the expenses for the measures taken to prevent, minimise, and remove the damage to the environment, coastline and related interests in the State, and the expenses incurred for restoring the environment. Another ₹526.51 crore was claimed towards the economic loss caused to the fishermen of the State.
Reducing the security amount, a Bench of Justice M.A. Abdul Hakhim said the averments by the government were insufficient to claim a compensation of ₹8,554.39 crore (towards environmental damage), since the magnitude of environmental damage due to oil pollution was lacking in the averments.
No document produced along with the plaint discloses any basis to claim the amount and hence the claim was an exorbitant one. However, the plaintiff had succeeded in proving the discharge of oil from the vessel into the sea, which would definitely create serious environmental pollution, it said.
Considering the materials showing the extent of oil discharge from the vessel and its impact on the marine environment and marine organisms, the court said a security of ₹500 crore would be sufficient to protect the interests of the State as of now.
The government had claimed ₹349 crore as compensation for economic loss to fishers due to market scare, which the court said could be demanded from the ship’s owners. The ₹71 crore claimed towards landing loss due to the fishing ban in the sea 20 nautical miles off Alappuzha for six months too could be demanded from them, the court said.
