Imported scrap: Old explosives of 2004 Iraq war kept as scrap adds to police work

NAVI MUMBAI: Ten years since a huge and deadly consignment of explosives materials from war ravaged Iraq arrived in the city as 'imported scrap', the Navi Mumbai police is still asking various government agencies and also the military to get rid of this dangerous scrap.
For the last seven years, this loose metal scap consisting for over 700 bullets, used and unused mortar shells, metal frames of rocket launchers and over 150 hand grenades, which were seized in October 2004, have been kept in an isolated house at Mosare village in Panvel taluka.
This is regularly guarded by two constables for safekeeping till it is finally disposed of.
We have now written to the army base at Devlali, near Nashik, to come and diffuse any live ammunition found in the imported scrap and also take it away. We have used a lot of our manpower to look after these seized materials in the last ten years,'' said the deputy commissioner of police (zone 2) Sanjay Yenpure.
He added that earlier, they had also written to various ordnance factories in the country, the bomb disposal squads and also PESO (Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation) to inspect the explosives riddled scrap and neutralize it. However, none of the agencies had so far responded to the police letters.
Reportedly, over 24 containers full of 'loose metals scrap' had arrived from Iraq to be sold at various steep melting factories in India.
After a fatal explosion of this imported scrap at one Bhushan Steep Plant in Ghaziabad, which killed 10 factory workers, the other scrap dealers in the rest of the country had started panicking and abandoned their consignments.
Kalamboli police had discovered one such abandoned explosive scrap near the Kalamboli steel market in October 2004.
One scrap import dealer had informed the police that the total scrap consignment of around 443 tonnes was dispatched from Iraq. It was to be sold at the Kalamboli steel market and also a part of it went to Uttarakhand and other steel foundries in north India.
Due to the high volumes of the explosives arriving in several parts of India at the time of Iraq war, even the central intelligence agencies and army units were asked to investigate for any terror threat in it.
It was later found that there was no terrorist threat angle in this scrap import, which was instead purely based on the commerce of sending excessive metal scrap to India, which was a ready buyer at that time.
Meanwhile, police continue to guard the house with explosives scrap in Mosare village in Panvel taluka, till the army experts come there to take it away.