The organisations working for the gas victims’ on Tuesday accused the State Government for criminal neglect in providing clean drinking water to neighbourhood residents of the abandoned pesticide factory.
While talking to media, the leaders of five organisations said that thousands of residents are forced to drink and cook with local ground water that is contaminated by the hazardous wastes of Union Carbide.
Satinath Sarangi of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action said that despite a Supreme Court order of May 2004 and the intervention by the Monitoring Committee set up by the Supreme Court at least 800 families are being denied piped supply of clean drinking water as of today. Sarangi, who is also a member of the Monitoring Committee said that on February 19, 2013, Justice K K lahoti, the Committee’s Chairman had given clear directions that the work of providing drinking water connections to all families that are resident of the 22 communities known to have contaminated ground water had to be completed by July 30.
Balkrishna Namdeo of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pension Bhogi Sangharsh Morcha said that there were 1000 people in Kainchi Chhola, Shiv Nagar and other areas whose houses were yet to be connected with pipelines. He said that homes of 3000 people in Jaiprakash Nagar, Karim Baksh Colony, Shakti Nagar, Navjeevan Colony and other areas were connected with pipelines but they had no water supply.
Rashida Bee of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmchari Sangh said that hundreds of families in Prem Nagar, Shiv Nagar, Blue Moon Colony, Navjeevan Colony and Preet Nagar faced chronic shortage of drinking water because of low pressure of water that was supplied every alternate day. Nawab Khan of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha said that in November 2012 and again in January 2013 the Supreme Court had issued clear directions to ensure that sewage lines and drinking water lines are kept apart so that there are no risks of contamination.
He said that despite these orders in Nawab Colony, Preet Nagar and Shivshakti Nagar, there are several places where sewage and drinking water lines are close to each other.