Five organisations working for the rights of the survivors of the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster on Monday called upon the Centre and the Madhya Pradesh Government to urgently respond to the judicial issues arising out of the ongoing contamination of soil and groundwater.
In a statement, they said the last date of intervention by the State regime in the suit for environmental remediation in Bhopal by the United States-based Union Carbide Corporation pending in the US Federal Court is November 28.
Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pension Bhogi Sangharsh Morcha’s Balkrishna Namdeo said that Justice Keenan in the Southern District Court of New York dismissed the matter concerning contamination of soil and ground water in and around the Union Carbide factory on July 30.
The 17 plaintiffs from Bhopal represented by US-based attorneys from Earth Rights International, Sharma and Deyoung llP and the law Offices of Curtis V Trinko have filed against the unjust order before the second circuit court of appeals.
“The State Government was served notice by the US court in early March 2014 but despite the Chief Minister’s declaration in the Assembly in 2010, the Government made no efforts to present the case for clean-up of the Union Carbide factory site and its surroundings till the matter was dismissed.” said Rachna Dhingra from the Bhopal Group for Information & Action, a solidarity organization. “The State Government through its lawyers only has till November 28 before the US court during the appeal process and make Union Carbide pay for their reckless dumping of hazardous wastes. “ she added.
Children Against Dow-Carbide’s Safreen Khan said they were hopeful that the State Government would intervene to seek money towards clean-up and remediation from the Union Carbide in the litigation pending in the US court.