Mangaluru :  MRPL, Karnataka’s sole Petroleum Refinery conducted an On-Site Emergency Mock Drill in its premises on September 19, Saturday in the presence of DC & DM of DK Dr Rajendra K V, IAS and Deputy Director of factories Rajesh Mishrikoti and other dignitaries. Officials from various wings of district administration and representatives from government bodies were present on occasion.

Experts from neighbouring industries assisted as observers while mutual aid agencies joined MRPL’s effort in showcasing its emergency handling capabilities.

The venue of On-site Emergency Plan Mock Drill was CDU or Crude Distillation Unit (Phase -1) of MRPL. The scenario executed was leakage of LPG from an equipment flange. This exercise falls under the District Disaster Management Plan, and it helps the administration and government agencies to evaluate the emergency preparedness of industries.

MRPL demonstrated its fire emergency handling capabilities and resources during the exercise. Different departments like Fire and safety, HSE, Operation and Maintenance of MRPL enthusiastically participated in the activity.

DC, on his part, witnessed entire exercise with keen interest and updated himself with various technical aspects and safety aspects related to the functioning of Petroleum Refineries. DC clarified from MRPL various technical details and legislative provisions about disaster mitigation and safety management inside a Refinery. He expressed his appreciation to MRPL for a well-demonstrated emergency handling.
From MRPL M. Venkatesh ( MD), Sanjay Varma ( DR),  Rajeev Kushwah ITS (CVO), BHV Prasad (ED-Projects) and M. Elango (ED-Refinery) were present along with senior employees of MRPL.

Rajesh Mishrikoti, Deputy Director of Factories, chaired the evaluation section. Vijay Kumar, DDP- DDMA, DC Office, D. K, Shri. Mohd. Zulfikar Nawaz, District Fire Officer, Mr Chandrappa, Circle Inspector, Surathkal Police Station, Mr Beema Naik, Officer Information In-charge, DC Office were present on the occasion. External observers from neighbouring industries like IOCL, HPCL, BPCL, OMPL, PMHBL, BASF, MSEZ presented their observations. All the comments raised by various external observers were noted, and an action plan for future improvements was discussed.

Mohd. Zulfikar Nawaz, appreciated MRPL ‘s CSR contribution of Rs 1 Crore worth of disaster management equipment to district administration which proved valuable in handling crisis during flood situation in various parts of DK district.