The proposed LPG terminal in Kochi that could pluck more than 1,000 LPG tankers off the road drags on despite one more explosive-laden truck going up in flames, killing 6 persons on Tuesday near Mangalore.
The LPG terminal and storage facility project, first mooted in 2009, has dragged though Cochin Port Trust, which allotted 37 acres for the project that year, expects to sign a final agreement with the Indian Oil Corporation soon to build the jetty as part of its multi-user liquid terminal.
However, the latest in series of hurdles to the project is opposition to setting up storage tanks on Puthuvype Island. The group, calling itself Puthyvype LPG Terminal Virudha Janakiya Samiti, has alleged the project work was progressing without environmental clearance.
A spokesman for the group claimed people in Puthuvype village, under Elamkunnappuzha panchayat, had raised their objections to the project during the public hearings.
The opposition comes at a time when the project seemed to have got into gear. Port Trust sources said the port authority was ready to complete the work as soon as it could. Indian Oil Corporation has handed over the construction of jetty to the Port Trust though the deal has not been formally inked.
The State revived the project in late 2011 and directed Kerala State Industries Development Corporation to intervene. A series of road accidents involving LPG tankers, including the one at Chala, in August 2012 had spotlighted the need to speed up the project in Kochi.
The State requires around 20,000 tonnes of LPG and the practice has been to transport by road the fuel imported at the New Mangalore port to Kerala.
