Bhopal, April 11: An artificial pond that stores fly ash and toxic residue from a coal power plant run by Reliance Power in Madhya Pradesh's Singrauli leaked on Friday evening with sludge entering houses of locals, reports said. Following the leak of toxic ash from Reliance Power's plant, five people went missing after they were swept away. Crops in nearby areas were also damaged. This is the third such incident in the last one year in Singrauli. Bhopal Gas Leak Victim Dies After Being Discharged Prematurely From BMHRC.

"The five people who got swept away were inside their houses, close to the boundary of the ash pond. This is serious negligence by Reliance Power. We are trying our best to rescue those villagers. Crops have also been damaged. We will ensure that compensation is given and the accountability is fixed," Singrauli District Collector KVS Chaudhary was quoted by NDTV as saying. Haryana: Ammonia Gas Leak from Plant in Kurukshetra District, 100 Affected.

Pictures and videos shared by locals showed a sea of sludge in the areas around the power plant. Villagers alleged that the leak of ash contaminated farmland. "Thousands of acres of land has been ruined, crops have been damaged. Two dead bodies have been found. A negligence case should be filed against the district administration, CEO of the power plant," Sandeep, a local, was quoted as saying.

Video, Pictures of Toxic Ash Leak From Reliance Power Plant:

Singrauli has 10 coal-based power plants. There have been protests against power plants in the area. These plants have made Singrauli the second-most critically polluted industrial zone in the country after Ghaziabad, according to the Central Pollution Control Board. In August last year, an artificial pond near Essar plant was breached. Similarly, in last October, the artificial pond of a power plant run by the National Thermal Power Corporation Limited leaked.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 11, 2020 11:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).