. NEW DELHI: The Centre has, for the first time, come out with dedicated rules to manage tar balls – weathered product of oil spills due to offshore oil exploration activities, oil tanker/ ship/ vessel accidents or pipeline leakages that cause marine pollution – and proposed mandatory provisions for owner of oil facilities for its collection, transport and disposal in an environmentally safe manner.Tar balls cause both on-shore and off-shore marine pollution, threatening the existence of shorebirds, sea turtles and marine life. Tar balls invariably affect beaches in Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat and Karnataka as it wash ashore specifically during the monsoon due to strong winds and currents.The environment ministry that notified a draft rules in this regard last week also made provisions of penalty (environmental compensation) for defaulter ‘oil facility owners’ on polluter pays principle, and assigned specific responsibilities to state governments, ministry of petroleum and natural gas, CPCB and ministry of defence (Indian Coast Guard) for environmentally sound management of tar balls.The ‘oil facility owners’ in the rules are described as those persons or companies who own or control or operate a facility/ ship/ vessel where oil (crude or fuel or both ) is extracted, explored, used, transported or handled.Notifying the draft rules, called the Tar-balls Management Rules, 2026, the ministry sought stakeholders’ comments/ suggestions on the proposal within the next sixty days. Final rules will be notified after examining the suggestions, if any. “They (rules) shall come into force after one year from the date of publication of final notification in the Official Gazette,” said the ministry in its draft proposal.Underlining penalty provisions, it said, “Where any oil facility owner fails to manage oil in an environmentally sound manner and lead to any oil spill thereby causing loss, damage or injury to environment or public health including formation of tar balls, it shall be liable to pay environmental compensation which may be equal to such loss, damage or injury and expenditure incurred or to be incurred by district administration towards management of tar balls.”Assigning responsibilities to the Indian Coast Guard, the rules noted that the defence ministry’s body will implement National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOS-DCP) to effectively manage oil spill management and tar balls formation.“The Indian Coast Guard shall undertake regular aerial and surface surveillance for oil spill in Indian EEZ and inform relevant stakeholders for necessary preparedness and response measures,” said the draft rules.Besides, the National Remote Sensing Agency will conduct surveillance and detection of oil-spills incidences and tar balls hot-spots through satellite, aerial, drones, sensor-equipped buoys, or by any other means, and will support the combat agencies.According to the rules, the ministry of petroleum and natural gas through its offshore installations will have to provide quarterly oil leakage or spill incident reports of every installation (up to 500 meters) to Indian Coast Guard, nearby Coastal state governments, the concerned State Pollution Control Boards and the CPCB.“Ministry of Petroleum and natural gas shall take all preventive steps to control oil spill from offshore oil exploration installations/facilities,” said the draft notification.About the AuthorVishwa MohanVishwa Mohan is Senior Editor at The Times of India. He writes on environment, climate change, agriculture, water resources and clean energy, tracking policy issues and climate diplomacy. He has been covering Parliament since 2003 to see how politics shaped up domestic policy and India’s position at global platform. Before switching over to explore sustainable development issues, Vishwa had covered internal security and investigative agencies for more than a decade.Read MoreEnd of ArticleFollow Us On Social MediaVideosJaishankar Speaks To Qatar PM, India Ramps Up Diplomatic Outreach Amid Iran EscalationUAPA Terror Case: NIA Court Sends US Citizen, 6 Ukrainians To 30-Day Judicial Custody‘Jointness To Theatre Commands Is Not Simple’: Lt Gen PJS Pannu On India’s Military ReformsModi Vs Mamata, Himanta Vs Gogoi: Why Pakistan Features In Bengal, Assam Poll RhetoricKhalistan Call In Canada Falls Flat, Low Turnout Exposes Gap Between Online Noise And Ground Reality’Left-Wing Extremism Not Over Yet’: Anand Ranganathan Warns as Amit Shah Calls India Naxal-Free’War Not A Roadblock’: Iran Envoy Fathali Says Chabahar Port Expansion Will Speed Up Post ConflictMajor Security Breach At Delhi Assembly As Car Rams Gate, Driver And Two Others ArrestedPM Modi Hails BJP Karyakartas for Selfless Service on Party’s Foundation DayMamata Banerjee Targets PM Modi Over Silence On Pak Threat To Kolkata Amid Bengal Elections Heat123PhotostoriesArti Singh on losing her mother as an infant, opens up about motherhood plans; says, “If I don’t conceive naturally, I’ll adopt—I’m an adopted child myself”10 rare and extraordinary animals you will only find in KenyaBTS concert moments that broke the internet: From Wembley to the Love Yourself tour10 simple ways to respect yourself (Even when no one else does)5 easy meal preps for Indian kitchens to save time during busy weekdaysDifference between Circle Rate and Market Rate in India: What every property buyer must know‘City of God’ to ‘Neelakasham Pachakadal Chuvanna Bhoomi’: Malayalam underrated masterpieces‘Bloodhounds 2’, ‘Perfect Crown’ to ‘The Scarecrow’: K-dramas releasing in April 2026 you can stream on OTT‘Maamla Legal Hai’, ‘Trial By Fire’ to ‘Criminal Justice’: Binge-worthy courtroom dramas to watch on OTTBeyond Aloo Jeera and Rasedar Aloo: 7 aloo ki sabji recipes for the entire week123Hot PicksDonald TrumpUpdated IPL Points TableStephen Curry MomSilver Rate TodayHow to Watch KKR vs PBKSPublic holidays April 2026Bank Holidays AprilTop TrendingVenus WilliamsAsian Stocks TodayStrait of HormuzIPL 2026Bengaluru Fake IPL ticketVijaySanju SamsonCongress Puducherry ManifestoSchool Holidays in AprilKarnataka 2nd PUC Exam Result Date
NEW DELHI: The Centre has, for the first time, come out with dedicated rules to manage tar balls – weathered product of oil spills due to offshore oil exploration activities, oil tanker/ ship/ vessel accidents or pipeline leakages that cause marine pollution – and proposed mandatory provisions for owner of oil facilities for its collection, transport and disposal in an environmentally safe manner.Tar balls cause both on-shore and off-shore marine pollution, threatening the existence of shorebirds, sea turtles and marine life. Tar balls invariably affect beaches in Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat and Karnataka as it wash ashore specifically during the monsoon due to strong winds and currents.The environment ministry that notified a draft rules in this regard last week also made provisions of penalty (environmental compensation) for defaulter ‘oil facility owners’ on polluter pays principle, and assigned specific responsibilities to state governments, ministry of petroleum and natural gas, CPCB and ministry of defence (Indian Coast Guard) for environmentally sound management of tar balls.The ‘oil facility owners’ in the rules are described as those persons or companies who own or control or operate a facility/ ship/ vessel where oil (crude or fuel or both ) is extracted, explored, used, transported or handled.Notifying the draft rules, called the Tar-balls Management Rules, 2026, the ministry sought stakeholders’ comments/ suggestions on the proposal within the next sixty days. Final rules will be notified after examining the suggestions, if any. “They (rules) shall come into force after one year from the date of publication of final notification in the Official Gazette,” said the ministry in its draft proposal.Underlining penalty provisions, it said, “Where any oil facility owner fails to manage oil in an environmentally sound manner and lead to any oil spill thereby causing loss, damage or injury to environment or public health including formation of tar balls, it shall be liable to pay environmental compensation which may be equal to such loss, damage or injury and expenditure incurred or to be incurred by district administration towards management of tar balls.”Assigning responsibilities to the Indian Coast Guard, the rules noted that the defence ministry’s body will implement National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOS-DCP) to effectively manage oil spill management and tar balls formation.“The Indian Coast Guard shall undertake regular aerial and surface surveillance for oil spill in Indian EEZ and inform relevant stakeholders for necessary preparedness and response measures,” said the draft rules.Besides, the National Remote Sensing Agency will conduct surveillance and detection of oil-spills incidences and tar balls hot-spots through satellite, aerial, drones, sensor-equipped buoys, or by any other means, and will support the combat agencies.According to the rules, the ministry of petroleum and natural gas through its offshore installations will have to provide quarterly oil leakage or spill incident reports of every installation (up to 500 meters) to Indian Coast Guard, nearby Coastal state governments, the concerned State Pollution Control Boards and the CPCB.“Ministry of Petroleum and natural gas shall take all preventive steps to control oil spill from offshore oil exploration installations/facilities,” said the draft notification.
