The Bhopal Disaster in Context What Happened Afterwards

It was one of the world's worst industrial accidents. Nearly 3,000

people died from the effects of the poisonous gas in the days
following the disaster. Estimates say that some 50,000 people were
treated in the first few days suffering terrible side-effects, including
blindness, kidney and liver failure. Campaigners say nearly 20,000
others have since died from the effects of the leak.
Investigations into the disaster revealed that something had gone
fundamentally wrong with a tank storing lethal methyl isocyanate
(MIC) which subsequently volatilised and escaped from a storage
tank. It covered the nearby shanty town, staying close to the ground
since as a gas it is heavier than air.
In 1989 Union Carbide, which is now a subsidiary of Dow Chemical,
paid the Indian Government 470m in a settlement which many
described as woefully inadequate.
In 1999 a voluntary group in Bhopal which believed not enough had
been done to help victims, filed a lawsuit in the United States
claiming Union Carbide violated international law and human rights.
In November 2002 India said it was seeking the extradition of former
Union Carbide boss Warren Anderson from the US. Mr Anderson
faces charges of "culpable homicide" for cost-cutting at the plant
which is alleged to have compromised safety standards.
In October 2004, the Indian Supreme Court approved a
compensation plan drawn up by the state welfare commission to
pay nearly $350m to more than 570,000 victims of the disaster.
There are frequent protests by local people about the plight of the
victims. Protesters want to press their case for more to be done to
clean up the site around the former factory, which still contains
thousands of tonnes of toxic chemicals. In 2008 many of
demonstrators walked 800km (500 miles) from the site of the 3
December 1984 disaster to Delhi. Although still a hotly debated
issue in India (especially Madhya Pradesh), it is not often an issue on
Western news progammes.
Groups representing the survivors and victims of the tragedy
appealed to Unesco earlier this month for the Union Carbide plant to
be preserved as an Industrial Heritage Site of international
importance, so that the building would stand as a memorial to the
disaster and educate future generations.
Survivors say that they will "physically block" any attempts to
dismantle the remaining structure. Other Unesco Industrial Heritage
Sites include the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz.
The BBC's Chris Morris in Delhi says one key issue is the plight of
children born in Bhopal since the disaster who suffer from a variety
of mental and physical disorders.

Union Carbide was bought by the Dow Chemical Company in 2001.

Dow says it is not responsible for cleaning up the site, which sits on
land owned by the Madhya Pradesh State Government.
Compiled from various BBC news articles (bbc.com)
Health Effects
MIC is a highly reactive gas that attacks the eyes and lungs, blinding
and suffocating its victims.
"It attacks the alveoli and crosses the pulmonary barrier into the
bloodstream, from where it affects every other organ," says Roopa
Baddi, a GP who treats patients in the shanty area surrounding the
now-defunct plant.
She reels off a list of conditions that she sees resulting from the gas,
including incidences that are far higher than the national average of
lung diseases such as fibrosis and tuberculosis; cancers, especially
of the bladder, cervix, lungs and oesophagus; eye disorders, such as
early-onset cataracts and blurred vision; infertility and menstrual
problems; kidney (renal) failure; joint problems; mental health
issues and damage to the immune system.
Women who were pregnant at the time of the explosion suffered a
high proportion of spontaneous abortions and stillbirths. And many
children born after in-utero exposure - or conceived after the
incident but whose parents were exposed - have health problems
and retarded growth and development, a team of researchers
reported in 2003 in the Journal of the American Medical Association
(Jama).

Possible intergenerational genetic disorders are still being

investigated. It is not know what chromosomal abnormalities (if any)
may be caused by MIC exposure. The research will also examine
whether the toxic waste poses a threat to people even now.
Prior to the 1984 leak, pesticide wastes were dumped to the north and east of
Bhopal city
The chemical waste was disposed of in landfill sites and three purpose-built ponds
Campaigners say chemicals from these ponds are now contaminating the
groundwater
Locals claim a range of disorders: skin, eye, joint and intestinal problems; rising
cancer rates
Sambhavna Trust Clinic has campaigned for clean water to be piped in for drinking
and bathing
It also wants the current site owner, Dow Chemical, to clean up and seal the
ponds
Dow Chemical, which bought Union Carbide, says it is not responsible for the
mess
Indian government says it does not have the resources to decontaminate the area
Protests in 2007 led to the government funding a limited supply of piped water
The Bhopal explosion remains the subject of ongoing court cases in India and the
US

Official Union Carbide Statement Regarding Bhopal Disaster

The 1984 gas leak in Bhopal was a terrible tragedy that continues to
evoke strong emotions even 30 years later. In the wake of the gas
release, UCC and its then chairman-Warren Anderson worked
diligently to provide aid to the victims and attempted to set up a
process to resolve their claims. All claims arising out of the release
were settled in 1989 at the explicit direction and with the approval
of the Supreme Court of India by means of a settlement agreement
between the Government of India and UCC [Union Carbide
Corporation] and UCIL [Union Carbide India Limited]. In 1991, and
again in 2007, the Supreme Court upheld the fairness and adequacy
of the settlement in response to court challenges from nongovernmental organizations.
The Bhopal plant was owned and operated by UCIL, an Indian
company in which UCC held just over half the stock. Other
stockholders included Indian financial institutions and thousands of
private investors in India. UCIL designed, built, managed and
operated the plant using Indian consultants and workers. In 1994,
UCC sold its entire stake in UCIL to McLeod Russel India Limited of
Calcutta, and UCIL was renamed Eveready Industries India Limited

(EIIL). As a result of the sale of its shares in UCIL, UCC retained no

interest in the Bhopal site. With the approval of the India Supreme
Court, the proceeds of the UCIL sale were placed in a trust and
exclusively used to fund a hospital in Bhopal, which now provides
specialist care to victims of the tragedy.
Because the government closed off the site from any and all
operations following the gas release, UCIL was only able to
undertake clean-up work in the years just prior to the UCC's sale of
its stock in 1994, and spent some $2 million on that effort. The
central and state government authorities approved, monitored and
directed every step of the clean-up work. Following the sale, we
understand that EIIL continued some clean-up work. In 1998, the
Madhya Pradesh State Government (MPSG), which owned and had
been leasing the property to EIIL -- and still owns the property today
-- cancelled EIIL's lease, took over the facility and assumed all
accountability for the site, including the completion of any additional
remediation. What additional clean-up work, if any, has been
undertaken since that time remains unclear.
Taken from http://www.bhopal.com/ [website operated by Union
Carbide]