In 1996-97, the industry scrapped a record 348 ships. The annual turnover of the industry stands at Rs 6,000 crore. The profit margins in the shipbreaking industry are huge and big-time contractors make umbelievable profits. Nearly 40 per cent of the metal trade is illegal. The shipbreakers are in constant touch with politicians.
Corruption is rampant, and a handful of people have things comfortably in control.
The results of this nexus are disastrous. Ships that might be carrying toxic wastes, PCBS, solid wastes, oil and other hazardous materials are docked at Alang virtually unchecked. Customs officials ask the captain for a list of materials in the ship on the basis of which it is allowed to be beached. My department does not have laboratories and other facilities to check whether any toxic material is present in the ship. So our officers largely rely on the captain's version says Sampat.