Gas pipeline leak news once again had sent shock waves among the people of Sarpavaram on the outskirts of Kakinada on Monday. When the staff working at Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) plant undertook venting operation, little volume of gas came out and people suspected that there was a major leakage.
The locals said they heard deafening sound from inside the plant around noon and immediately alerted fire and police personnel. “We saw some smoke and fumes in the air and also little odour,”said Ravula Satyanarayana, petty shop vendor near Sarvaram junction.
However, GAIL General Manager (operations and maintenance) of Rajahmundry M.V. Iyer said it was a routine operation and when the technical staff tried to maintain low pressure in the gas pipeline which goes to a fertilizer factory, little volume of gas came out and the public mistook as pipeline leakage.
Meanwhile, the series of small leakages here and there along the gas pipeline of GAIL or ONGC creating panic among people in East Godavari district for the last 10 days after the Nagaram incident.
