Asbestos, if found, will be taken back: France

French Ambassador Gerald Dominic has assured the Gujarat government that France would ship back hazardous material if it was found in excess quantity on French warship Clemenceau.

The scheduled arrival of Clemenceau at the Alang ship-breaking yard in Bhavnagar is expected to rekindle controversy on account of the asbestos in it, which would reportedly add to the existing problems of pollution at the yard.

Gerald Dominic arrived at Bhavnagar airport with a 19-member team on Wednesday to try and resolve the issue on behalf of the French government. He drove straight to the Alang-Sosiya Shipyard after his arrival.

Addressing the media, he assured pressmen that no hazardous materials were being carried on Clemenceau. If at all such material hazardous to the environment was found on it, it would be shipped back to France.

At most, there could be 2% of material (hardly 45 MT) which may pose an environmental issue, he said. Further, his government would take complete responsibility for the ship until it was broken down.

Mukesh Patel, the shipyard owner, told Business Standard, "We have been adhering strictly to Supreme Court guidelines in this context. We had also been to France and had a special training on how to handle the breaking process for this warship. So we fail to understand this unnecessary hue and cry."

With the French ambassador's assurance, the issue had come to an end, "but still we would be waiting for the decision of the Supreme Court in this connection,'' he added.

Meanwhile, the Shiv Sena unit at Bhavnagar held protests against Greenpeace.org outside the airport.

"We are against Greenpeace.org as they are blaming the most precious business the nation owns, that is ship-breaking activity at Alang. They have been blaming Alang frequently on grounds of pollution. If at all this business is shifted from Bhavnagar, it is a loss to the nation and in turn this activity will flourish in Bangladesh, Pakistan and China," complained Kishor Bhatt, president of the Shiv Sena unit.

Reacting to the stand of the French envoy and the protests held against Greenpeace, Ramapati Kumar, an activist said, "First of all, the French government is still talking in ifs and buts. They are sure that there is toxic waste in the ship. Second, they are now talking of technology transfer once they have realised the pressure from the public and environmental activists. Third, all of a sudden the working conditions at Alang have been revamped. What does all this indicate? If they knew that there was toxic waste in the ship, why in the first place was it sent to a developing nation like ours?"