New Delhi, July 26 -- Sri Lanka's top court on Thursday ordered the owners of a Singapore-flagged container ship that sank near its capital to pay $1 billion in compensation to the island nation's government for causing the most severe marine environment catastrophe in the country's history.

The container ship MV X-Press Peal, which was carrying chemicals, sank off Colombo in June, 2021 after catching fire. The Supreme Court said the incident caused "unprecedented devastation to the marine environment of Sri Lanka" and harmed the country's economy, especially the lives of the fishing communities.

Judges said the disaster led to the death of 417 turtles, 48 dolphins, eight whales and a large number of fish species that washed ashore afte...