By Sudarshan Varadhan
CHENNAI (Reuters) – Six people are missing after an fly ash dyke gave way at a coal-fired power plant in the Singrauli district of India’s central state of Madhya Pradesh, a top local official told Reuters, in the third such incident there in a year.
Five villagers and a worker at the site owned by Reliance Power were swept up in a flow of fly ash which travelled at least six kilometres, swallowing up whole agricultural fields along the way.
Fly ash is a powdery byproduct of burning pulverised coal.
“The sludge flowed from the dyke and then mixed with a stream, which carried it further,” said K.V.S. Chaudhary, top bureaucrat in the Singrauli district.
It was not clear how the dyke broke. Reliance Power did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Another local official, who was not authorised to speak to the media, said “strict action” would be taken against Reliance Power in line with environmental laws, but did not elaborate.
The 4,000 megawatt (MW) plant was running at full capacity and is not expected to shut, the official said.
Local media reported a fly ash dyke break at a plant operated by Essar in August and another run by NTPC Ltd in October.
(Reporting by Sudarshan Varadhan; editing by Jason Neely)
