In order to mitigate the effect of oil spills on land and in marine areas, the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (NOSDCP) was approved by the government. The idea is to mitigate the impact of all oil spills on the environment by setting specific standards for oil spill equipment stockpiles, establishing time frames for oil spill response and increasing collaboration among partner agencies.

The 18th National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan and preparedness meeting was held at Dehradun on May 31, 2013.

Vice Admiral Anurag G Thapliyal, Director General Indian Coast Guard, Chairman NOSDCP, noted that there has been no major oil spill since the last NOSDCP meeting.

He appreciated the efforts put in by the various resource agencies and stakeholders for cleanup of oiled mangroves at Sikka and Sarmat in the Gulf of Kutchchh, capping of gas leak from the ONGC well off Kakinada, and response to the fire onboard M.V Amsterdam Bridge off the Mumbai harbour.

Thapliyal urged all stakeholders to maintain the required inventory of oil spill response equipment and rehearse response procedures through regular conduct of mock drills and exercises.

He emphasised the need for periodical review of contingency plans in order to ensure swift and efficient mobilisation of critical resources in the event of any oil spill contingency.

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