‘32 years on, toxic waste still lying in Union Carbide factory’

BHOPAL: Survivors of 1984 Bhopal Gas tragedy on Saturday staged a protest in front of the now-defunct Union Carbide factory here on the 32nd anniversary of the world’s worst industrial disaster, with activists alleging that toxic waste lying there was still to be cleaned up.

They burnt the US flags and effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, claiming that the Union Government was not forcing the Dow Chemical, which acquired Union Carbide, to own up its responsibility towards the victims and cleanup of the factory.

Gas leakage from Union Carbide, which made pesticides, on the night of December 2-3, 1984, left more than 3,000 people dead and many more injured. Abdul Jabbar and other leaders of NGOs working for gas leak victims demanded that governments of USA and India stop sheltering the MNCs and ensure justice and life of dignity for the half million survivors.

“The abandoned factory’s toxic waste is still killing and maiming people living around its premises,” Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pension Bhogee Sangharsh Morcha president, Balkrishna Namdeo said. Rashida Bi, president of Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh, said those living in the radius of five km of the factory were forced to drink the contaminated underground water and “are contracting deadly diseases due to the seepage of toxic waste dumped in the factory premises”.

Union Carbide dumped 1.1 million tonnes of toxic waste on the premises during its 14 years of operations, she claimed.

“Right now, 340 tonnes of toxic waste is lying on the ground. The Dow Chemical Company which took over Carbide in 2001 is responsible for cleaning up the contamination of soil and ground- water in more than 50 sq km area around the factory,” she said.

“The MP government is aware of the contamination of groundwater here since 1991. Yet, till on Saturday it has taken no legal steps to make Dow Chemical pay for the clean-up, or for the adverse health effects on residents living next to the abandoned factory,” Sarangi said. -