Doctors File Petition in HC Against Disposal of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Toxic Waste

The toxic waste was supposed to be shifted from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal to the Pithampur industrial area near Indore for incineration and on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, highly toxic methyl isocyanate (MIC) leaked from the Union Carbide factory, resulting in the deaths of 5,479 people, while more than five lakh others were affected. It is considered the world’s worst industrial disaster.

On December 3, the MP HC pulled up the authorities for not taking steps to dispose of the waste despite repeated directions, including from the Supreme Court. In the PIL, Dr Sanjay Londhe, president of the Alumni Association of Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College in Indore, and oncologists S S Nair and Vineeta Kothari have questioned the state government’s preparations to dispose of the waste.

“Although the likely date of hearing on this PIL is January 9, we have urged the High Court to constitute a special bench and hear this petition immediately,” their counsel Abhinav P Dhanodkar told PTI.

The PIL stated several doctors, experts, and researchers have pointed out that the disposal of the waste might increase the chances of cancer and breathing-related issues in Pithampur and Indore. The PIL also contended that local bodies and residents of Pithampur and Indore were not taken into confidence before this decision was taken. Pithampur industrial area, which has 1,250 small and big factories, does not have a “proper government hospital”, the plea said.

“Further, it is essential to mention here that due to the ongoing disposal activities in the plant of the Ramky Enviro Engineers Limited (parent company of Pithampur Industrial Waste Management Pvt. Ltd, as claimed in the petition) situated in the Pithampur, in Village Tarapur, not only the soil and water of the Tarapur village is polluted but also of the adjacent villages, which are causing huge health issues in those villages,” the petition reads.

The petitioners also highlighted that 40% of Indore's drinking water is sourced from the Yashwant Sagar Dam, and the incineration plant is dangerously close to the Gambhir River, which provides water for the dam. The plan to transport toxic waste from the Bhopal gas tragedy to Pithampur for disposal at the waste treatment facility should be stopped immediately, the plea said.

The plea also sought the formation of a judicial committee under the chairmanship of a sitting HC judge to assess the apprehended effects of waste disposal on the citizens and air of Pithampur and its surrounding areas.

Meanwhile, the work to remove 377 metric tonnes of hazardous waste from the now-defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal has already started ahead of its planned disposal near Indore. The development comes weeks after the MP High Court chided the authorities for not taking action despite repeated directions to clear the site in the Madhya Pradesh capital. The work at the industrial site is being accessed for the first time in 40 years, which presents numerous logistical issues, according to Mr Singh, who told The Hindu.

“The whole factory has been shut for 40 years so naturally there are challenges. The packing and putting the waste into the bags is going on but the vehicular movement inside the factory is hindered as tyres sometimes get stuck in the ground,” he said. According to Mr Singh, a trial using 10 tonnes of rubbish was carried out in 2015 and its report was presented to the High Court. He further denied that incineration of the waste would have any negative effects on the local community.

“People who are making these claims in the media, why don’t they submit their apprehensions in the court? We are following all the directions of the High Court and it has given the order after considering all the facts for years,” he said. The government will partially incinerate the garbage first and not altogether. According to Mr Singh, the authorities will make sure that neither soil nor water bodies are exposed to the two types of residues from incineration. According to him, the solid residue will be treated and buried at landfill sites that have been prepared with two-layer membranes, and the smoke will only be released into the atmosphere following a four-layer filtration process.