| Revision as of 08:23, 18 November 2003 view sourceChancemill (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users1,711 editsm typo← Previous edit | Revision as of 08:49, 18 November 2003 view source Chancemill (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users1,711 edits Restructuring. Judicial cases . AllegationsNext edit → | ||
| Line 3: | Line 3: | ||
| The MIC was released from a chemical plant in the city producing pesticides. Owned by ], the plant had been established in ] and expanded to produce Sevin in ]; MIC was an intermediate in ] manufacture. | The MIC was released from a chemical plant in the city producing pesticides. Owned by ], the plant had been established in ] and expanded to produce Sevin in ]; MIC was an intermediate in ] manufacture. | ||
| == Factors leading to the tragedy == | |||
| The accident was caused by the introduction of water into MIC holding tanks, the reaction generated large volumes of gas forcing the emergency release of pressure. The gas escape was caused as the chemical 'scrubbers' which should have treated the gas were off-line for repairs at the time of release. The majority of deaths and serious injuries were related to ]s, but the gas caused a wide variety of other ailments. | |||
| The accident was caused by the introduction of water into MIC holding tanks, the reaction generated large volumes of gas forcing the emergency release of pressure. The gas escape was caused as the chemical 'scrubbers' which should have treated the gas were off-line for repairs at the time of release. Investigations have revealed that many safety procedures were bypassed and the standard of operations in the Indian plant did not match those in the other plants of ]. It was also alleged that these safety procedures were wilfully toned down as a part of "cost cutting operations" of the India plant that ] was involved in at that time. Recent documents that surfaced during a compensation claims case involving New York Federal District revealed that ] frequently exported "untested technology" to the Indian plant. ] denies the allegations in its web-site dedicated to the tragedy. | |||
| The majority of deaths and serious injuries were related to ]s, but the gas caused a wide variety of other ailments. | |||
| == Investigation and judicial cases against Union Carbide == | |||
| In an out-of-court settlement reached on ], ], Union Carbide agreed to pay $470,000,000 to the Indian government for damages it caused in the Bhopal Tragedy. (The original lawsuit was for $3 billion.) | In an out-of-court settlement reached on ], ], Union Carbide agreed to pay $470,000,000 to the Indian government for damages it caused in the Bhopal Tragedy. (The original lawsuit was for $3 billion.) | ||
| The CEO of ] at that time, ] (who had retired by 1986) was declared a fugitive from law by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Bhopal on February 1, 1992 for non-appearance for hearings in the court, in a case of culpable homicide where he was named the prime accused. Orders were passed to the Government Of India to press for an extradition from the ], with whom India had an extradition treaty in place. A plea by the ] to dilute the charges from culpable homicide to criminal negligence has since been dismissed by the Indian courts. As on date, Anderson is still an absconder before the Indian courts and faces charges that if proven may result in an imprisonment of upto 10 years . | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | Meanwhile, very little of the money from the settlement reached with ] went to the survivors, and people in the area feel betrayed not only by Union Carbide (and chairman ],) but also by their own politicians. On the anniversary of the tragedy, effigies of Anderson and politicians are burnt. | ||
| Rates of cancer and other ailments are higher in the region since the event. | Rates of cancer and other ailments are higher in the region since the event. | ||
Revision as of 08:49, 18 November 2003
The Bhopal Tragedy refers to the deaths of over 3,000 people in the Indian city of Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, following the accidental release of forty tons of methyl isocyanate (MIC) on December 2-3, 1984 from a chemical plant located in the heart of the city. At least 50,000 people suffered significant injury.
The MIC was released from a chemical plant in the city producing pesticides. Owned by Union Carbide, the plant had been established in 1969 and expanded to produce Sevin in 1979; MIC was an intermediate in Sevin manufacture.
Factors leading to the tragedy
The accident was caused by the introduction of water into MIC holding tanks, the reaction generated large volumes of gas forcing the emergency release of pressure. The gas escape was caused as the chemical 'scrubbers' which should have treated the gas were off-line for repairs at the time of release. Investigations have revealed that many safety procedures were bypassed and the standard of operations in the Indian plant did not match those in the other plants of Union Carbide. It was also alleged that these safety procedures were wilfully toned down as a part of "cost cutting operations" of the India plant that Union Carbide was involved in at that time. Recent documents that surfaced during a compensation claims case involving New York Federal District revealed that Union Carbide frequently exported "untested technology" to the Indian plant. Union Carbide denies the allegations in its web-site dedicated to the tragedy.
The majority of deaths and serious injuries were related to pulmonary oedemas, but the gas caused a wide variety of other ailments.
Investigation and judicial cases against Union Carbide
In an out-of-court settlement reached on February 14, 1989, Union Carbide agreed to pay $470,000,000 to the Indian government for damages it caused in the Bhopal Tragedy. (The original lawsuit was for $3 billion.)
The CEO of Union Carbide at that time, Warren Anderson (who had retired by 1986) was declared a fugitive from law by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Bhopal on February 1, 1992 for non-appearance for hearings in the court, in a case of culpable homicide where he was named the prime accused. Orders were passed to the Government Of India to press for an extradition from the United States, with whom India had an extradition treaty in place. A plea by the Central Bureau of Investigation to dilute the charges from culpable homicide to criminal negligence has since been dismissed by the Indian courts. As on date, Anderson is still an absconder before the Indian courts and faces charges that if proven may result in an imprisonment of upto 10 years .
Meanwhile, very little of the money from the settlement reached with Union Carbide went to the survivors, and people in the area feel betrayed not only by Union Carbide (and chairman Warren Anderson,) but also by their own politicians. On the anniversary of the tragedy, effigies of Anderson and politicians are burnt.
Rates of cancer and other ailments are higher in the region since the event.