GSI team to visit Andaman to investigate eruption at India's only active mud volcano in Baratang
Port Blair (PTI): The Geological Survey of India (GSI) will send a team to the Baratang Island to investigate the recent eruption of India's only active mud volcano, a senior official said on Sunday.
Speaking to PTI, GSI's Deputy Director General Shantanu Bhattacharjee said the volcano was dormant for more than two decades, and the October 2 eruption seemed to have happened due to tectonic movement.
"A team of seven geologists from Kolkata will visit Baratang on October 7 and inspect the area. They will collect mud and gas samples for tests. We already have a testing facility at Baratang," he said.
"The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are in the subduction zone due to frequent movement of tectonic plates, which causes tremors most of the time. Even the eruption of lava at Barren Island could be due to the tectonic plate movement," he added.
Asked if the eruptions were a cause of concern, Bhattacharjee said it is better to wait for the official report.
Thousands of tourists visit India's only mud volcano at Baratang, located in the North and Middle Andaman district, nearly 150 km from Port Blair.
"The mud volcano has been formed by gases deep inside the earth from decaying organic matter. It pushes the mud and gas to the surface, which creates bubbles and craters. It is one of the must-visit spots in Andaman," Bhattacharjee said.
The eruption on October 2 was reported around 1.30 pm at Jarwa Creek. Witnesses described hearing a loud explosion, followed by a violent discharge of mud.
The eruption created an earth mound approximately 3-4 metre high, spreading mud over an area of more than 1,000 sq metre. Activity has since ceased, but as a precaution, tourist access to the site has been suspended.
"Such a big eruption was last reported in 2005," a local official said.
Barren Island, located around 140 km by sea from Port Blair, also experienced two minor eruptions last month, on September 13 and 20.
This uninhabited island sits at the convergence of the Indian and Burmese tectonic plates, and has a history of volcanic activity dating back to 1787, with notable eruptions in 1991, 2005, 2017, and most recently in November 2022.
The closest inhabited areas to Barren Island, which is spread over 8.34 sq km, are Swaraj Dweep (Havelock Island) and the Narcondam Lookout Post, both located about 140-150 km away.
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Police refused to file FIR in Baramati plane crash; our suspicion growing stronger, says Rohit Pawar
Mumbai (PTI): NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar on Wednesday claimed that the Mumbai police refused to file an FIR in connection with the plane crash, in which Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar was killed, and said the refusal has deepened the suspicion surrounding the accident.
The government and the machinery appeared to be protecting someone, he alleged.
Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday directed the grounding of four aircraft of VSR Ventures, whose plane crashed at Baramati on January 28, killing Ajit Pawar and four others.
Following the crash of the Learjet 45 aircraft (VT-SSK), the aviation regulator had ordered a special safety audit of VSR Ventures, and the audit team observed several non-compliances of approved procedures in the area of airworthiness, air safety, and flight operations.
In a message posted on a social media platform, Rohit Pawar claimed, "While awaiting appropriate action regarding Ajitdada's plane crash, yesterday the DGCA report arrived stating that this accident was caused by the negligence of VSR company."
However, since no FIR has been filed in this regard, he along with party MLC Amol Mitkari, Idris Naikwadi and MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar, went to the Marine Drive police station in south Mumbai to demand registration of an FIR under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), he said.
He claimed that when the process to record his statement began, a senior police official refused to register the FIR and instead accepted their application merely as a formality.
"The conduct of the police has further intensified our suspicion regarding the plane crash. If even after demands by elected representatives from both the opposition and the ruling parties the police are discarding the demand to register an FIR, it is unfortunate for Maharashtra," Pawar, who represents the Karjat-Jamkhed assembly constituency in Ahilyanagar district, said in the post.
The government and the machinery appeared to be protecting someone, he alleged, and questioned whether Ajit Pawar would get justice if such a situation persisted.
The NCP (SP) legislator said they would not relent until the matter is taken to its logical conclusion.
He added that at 9 am on Thursday, all those who love his uncle Ajit Pawar would go to the Baramati taluka police station to press for registration of an FIR.
While the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is expected to come out with its preliminary report into the fatal crash before February 28, concerns have been raised in certain quarters claiming there could have been a conspiracy that led to the crash.
