Centre seeks environmental impact assessment on MSC Elsa 3 shipwreck

The Centre has requested the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM), Tamil Nadu, to undertake a comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the sinking of the container ship MSC Elsa 3 off the Alappuzha coast on May 25.

The Centre’s decision was conveyed by Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Kirti Vardhan Singh, in the Lok Sabha on Monday (July 21, 2025). He was replying to a question raised by Hibi Eden, MP, on whether the government had conducted or initiated a detailed EIA into the back-to-back ship accidents off the Kerala coast, including the sinking of MSC Elsa 3 and the explosion on the Singapore-flagged vessel Wan Hai 503 off the Beypore coast on June 9.

“The EIA on the MSC Elsa 3 incident will be carried out in coordination with the State government. A total of 66 containers had washed ashore and have since been recovered by the agency appointed by the owners of MSC Elsa 3. None of the containers contained hazardous cargo, and no damage or hazard has been reported. Around 540 metric tonnes of plastic nurdles have been collected from the Kerala coast and the southern coast of Tamil Nadu,” Mr. Singh said.

In the case of Wan Hai 503, the Indian Coast Guard, Indian Navy, Directorate General of Shipping, and other authorities concerned took proactive measures to contain and mitigate any potential environmental risks, according to the Minister.