HC might take up waste disposal petition today

Bhopal: All eyes are set on the Madhya Pradesh High Court which on Monday is expected to hear the matter concerning the Union Carbide waste sent from Bhopal to Dhar district for disposal. The move to dispose of 337 tons of Union Carbide waste at Pithampur, about 250 km from the state capital, has triggered protests, including two self-immolation bids.

According to the website of the MP High Court on Sunday, the matter has been listed for hearing by the division bench of Chief Justice SK Kait and Justice Vivek Jain on January 6 (Monday).

During the last hearing on December 3, the HC had pulled up the authorities for failing to dispose of the waste lying at the now-defunct factory in Bhopal. Even 40 years after the gas disaster, the authorities are in a “state of inertia” that may cause “another tragedy”, it had said.

The high court had asked the government to remove and transport the waste from the site within four weeks and warned of contempt proceedings if the directive was not acted upon.

The HC direction had come on a writ petition filed in 2004 for the disposal of waste from the Union Carbide plant, which had triggered one of the world’s worst industrial disasters.

On the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal, killing at least 5,479 persons and leaving thousands with serious injuries and long-lasting health issues.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and Chief Secretary Anurag Jain have told reporters that the government would seek more time from the HC for the disposal of the waste in the wake of the protests.

Both have also assured that the public would be taken into confidence before the waste disposal.