Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Victims of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy 1984 have warned the administration of conducting a peaceful mass agitation if their demand of revising the figures of number of deaths and ailments caused, in the curative petition is not met by December 26.
A curative petition for additional compensation to the victims from Union Carbide and its owner Dow Chemical filed by the central government in 2010, for the Bhopal gas disaster is scheduled to be heard on January 10, 2023. In this regard, the victims of the tragedy interacted with the media here on Tuesday.
Social activist, and a member of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action Rachna Dhingra said, ”We met with central government officials in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers and those in the state government’s Department of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation in this regard but they have refused to share concrete information.”
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh, president Rashida Bee said, “On November 17, the principal secretary of the Department of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation, had assured us in a meeting that in accordance with the chief minister’s views, the state government will ensure that in the curative petition the figure of disaster related deaths is revised upward from 5,295 to 15,342. Also, the injuries suffered by all the 5,21,332 persons exposed to the harmful gas are considered to be of permanent and not temporary nature.”
“Following directions from the office of the attorney general, we have submitted documents in support of upward revision of the figures of damage caused by the disaster. However, we are still awaiting confirmation that information sent by us has actually been incorporated into the documents submitted to the Supreme Court”, said Balkrishna Namdeo, president of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pensionbhogi Sangharsh Morcha.
