Pollution of Sea Water

No Research and Development study has been undertaken on water pollution in the Indian Ocean so far. A dedicated programme namely, Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System (COMAPS) was implemented along the coast water of Indian subcontinent by the MoES during 1991 till date, to assess the impact of various pollutants on the health of marine eco-systems. On the basis of the time series data on these sampling locations, for about 20 years, it emerged that only at few location impact could be seen. The areal extend of the impact of these pollutants in marine region has been limited.

Expenditure incurred for COMAPS programme is ` 17 crore for X Five Year Plan and 20 crore for XI Five Year Plan. The Government has not proposed any plan to check and clean all the sea shores in the country. The aerial extent of the impact of these pollutants on marine region has since been limited to short distance from the coast. Nevertheless State Administration has been provided with required data to take up action in this regard at their end if required.

The Minister of State for Science and Technology and earth Sciences, Shri Ashwani Kumar gave this information in a written reply to a question by Dr. Kruparani Killi in Lok Sabha today.

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KP