Bhopal: On this day, 35 years ago, a massive tragedy hit Madhya Pradesh's Bhopal as toxic methyl isocyanate gas escaped from an American pesticide plant on the dreadful night of December 2, 1984.
The pesticide plant, Union Carbide released at least 30 tons of these poisonous fumes affecting 6,00,000 people.
These gases led to an estimate of 15,274 people being killed and 5,74,000 prone to a lifetime of deformation while official numbers suggest a much lower estimate according to Gas Victim Organisation.
This deadly gas leak has not spared the later generations and till today children are born deformed.
The irony that struck them on that fateful night, haunts them till date as they continue to battle the authorities to receive treatment and the rightful compensation.
According to the Supreme Court verdict on October 3, 1991, the gas tragedy victims were entitled to compensation from the Centre if the number of victims increased.
It was observed that the official number of deaths and the people affected by the tragedy did not match with the actual numbers, which were extremely high.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Satinath Sadangi, President of Gas Victim Organisation insisted that the state government should report the exact number of people affected by the tragedy and avoid misleading the apex court.
Sadangi further said that the United Nations was ready to clean up the contaminated location of the factory but neither centre nor state governments paid any attention to the UN proposal.
"For six years people were provided with compensation, that took almost 12 years to sanction, i.e., 1992 to 2004 as there were end number of petitions filed," advocate Jay Prakash Bhattacharya said.
They filed a special petition for an increase in the compensation for the affected families, which was accepted by the Supreme Court only in 2010.
The organisations fighting for these families allege that more than 20,000 deaths have occurred in Bhopal due to the tragedy, while more than 5 lakh have been affected.
Reports reveal the affected families and their newborn children are deformed even today.
Ironically, even after fighting for the appropriate amount of compensation for all these years, the tragedy victims still do not have access to proper treatment or health care.
People receive a mere two to three tablets as a treatment for their deformity.
The Gas Victims Organization and the people affected by it have alleged that many governments have come and gone in these three decades, but neither the state government nor the Centre have taken the necessary rehabilitation measures for the gas victims.
