THE
TWENTY EIGHT LONG YEARS
Twenty
eight years have been eaten up to discharge the waste of the union carbide
disaster occurred Bhopal in the year 1984. On June 4th 2012 the Supreme
Court slammed the government for not being serious on disposal of toxic waste
lying in the defunct Union Carbide India Ltd (UCIL) plant, now represented by
DOW Chemical Company, in Bhopal for the last 28 years and asked it to take a
final decision on it soon.
Thereafter
on 8th June 2012 Group of Ministers (GoM) gave its approval to the
Madhya Pradesh government on Friday to dispose 350 metric tonnes of Union
Carbide toxic waste in Germany. As per the decision this waste will be lifted
in the time period of one year for which centre will pay cost of Rs 25 crores
[less than the years of the disaster]. Home
Minister P Chidambaram has asked the state government to prepare an agreement
within two weeks' time. The
disposal would be carried out by German agency GIZ IS.
350
tonnes of toxic waste containing of methyl iso cyanate gas leaked has been
lying in the surroundings of the union carbide factory since this disaster took
place on 2 and 3rd December 1984. Due to this toxic waste around
25,000 people died in the immediate aftermath and 1000,000 people are still
suffering from the side effects in way of both mentally and physically.
This decision has come up as a relief. Thing to
watch now is its implementation.
