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Bhopal:
Two Non-Government Organizations,
(NGOs), working for the welfare of survivors of Bhopal Gas Tragedy,
the world's worst industrial disaster, have urged the Lok Sabha
(Lower House) Speaker Meira Kumar and chairman of Rajya Sabha (Upper
House) and Vice President of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari to take the
initiative in ensuring that the Members of the respective houses
paid homage to the gas victims of the chemical disaster on this
occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Bhopal gas leak disaster
which falls on 3rd December this year.
The two NGOs namely Bhopal Gas Peedith
Mahila Udyog Sanghathan, (BGPMUS), and Bhopal Gas Peedith Sangharsh
Sahayog Samiti, (BGPSSS), in separate letters to the heads of both
Houses have also fervently hoped that the members of the Houses
would not only pay homage to the victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy
but would also prevail upon the Government of India to make amends
for its past mistakes and do the needful for the benefit of the
ailing gas-victims.
In jointly written separate letters to
Meira Kumar and Hamid Ansari, Abdul Jabbar Khan, Convener BGPMUS,
and N. D. Jayaprakash, Co-Convener BGPSSS, have reminded them that
on the intervening night of 02/03 December 1984, over two-thirds of
the 900,000 residents of the city of Bhopal were exposed to highly
toxic gases that escaped from the premises of Union Carbide India
Limited, which was controlled by Union Carbide Corporation, a U.S.
multi-national company. The Claim Courts in Bhopal have determined
that 574,367 victims had suffered injuries in varying degree causing
the untimely death of several thousands. The grievousness of the
injuries suffered by the victims are such that even 25 years after
the disaster no less than 6000 victims continue to visit hospitals
everyday due to disaster-related ailments. Progenies of gas victims
appear to be suffering from genetic effects and, reportedly, there
is a rise in cancer cases of various kinds.
They pointed out that what is equally
worse is that the Settlement amount of 470 million U.S. dollars,
which was determined on the assumption that there were only about
105,000 gas-victims, including 3000 dead, was actually disbursed to
574,367 gas-victims, including over 15,000 dead, the letters said.
Effectively, they stressed, this meant
that each gas-victim was in fact awarded less than one-fifth of what
he/she was eligible to receive as per the terms of the Settlement,
which itself was a paltry sum as compared to the magnitude and
gravity of the disaster. The next of kin of each of the dead were
awarded a sum of Rs. 2,00,000/- on an average and each of the
injured were awarded a sum of Rs. 50,000/- on an average. However,
none of the gas victims was paid interest for the period of delay in
the award of compensation despite the fact the process of
adjudication of claims stretched from 1992 to 2006, i.e., eight to
twenty-two years after the disaster.
On the contrary, the letter said, in
the case of the Uphaar Cinema tragedy in New Delhi of 1996, the next
of kin of each of the dead was awarded Rs. 15 to 18 lakhs and each
of the injured was awarded 1,00,000/- plus 9 per cent interest in
2003 from the date of the tragedy. This is just an example of the
discriminatory treatment meted out the victims of the Bhopal gas
tragedy, the duo contended.
Moreover, the accused officials of
Union Carbide are yet to be punished for their criminal negligence
that led to the tragedy. In fact, the Government of India has made
little efforts to bring accused No. 1, Warren Anderson and concerned
officials of accused Nos.10 & 11, Union Carbide Corporation and
Union Carbide Eastern, to face trial in India. Instead, the
Government of India is doing all it can to please Dow Chemical
Company, the present owners of the Union Carbide Corporation, the
letters stated.
pervezbari@eth.net
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