Kerala HC directs Defence Ministry to file report on hazardous cargo threat from MSC Elsa 3 shipwreck

The Kerala High Court has directed the Ministry of Defence to file a report regarding the condition of the containers with hazardous cargo from MSC Elsa 3, a Liberia-flagged vessel that sank off the coast of Alappuzha in May 2025, and whether they remain properly tethered and secured.

The Division Bench of Justices V. Raja Vijayaraghavan and K.V. Jayakumar noted that the National Institute of Oceanography planned to undertake an environmental damage assessment and a long-term scientific study to determine the extent of damage caused by the shipwreck. However, it held that the assessment would not substitute for an independent technical verification of the survey reports.

Assessing the survey reports, the court noted that approximately 84 containers were partially embedded in the seabed, and several had structural damage. The court expressed apprehension that it is not known whether the doors remained tethered.