While the nation-wide cleanliness campaign was launched on Thursday, the hazardous chemical waste lying in the premises of the Union Carbide pesticide factory could not be disposed of as a petition is still pending in the court.
On the recommendation of a technical sub-committee constituted by the Government of India, it was decided in year 2006 that all kinds of waste (total 350 MT) lying on the premises of Union Carbide factory in Bhopal will be disposed of through incineration. These include savin residue, naphthol residue, reactor residue and semi processed pesticides.
The remaining 33.3 MT lime sludge was land-filled in Pithampur TSDF in year 2008 as per the norms of the Central Pollution Control Board, New Delhi. A public interest litigation concerning destruction of these chemical wastes is pending in the Madhya Pradesh High Court, Jabalpur and an SlP in the Supreme Court since year 2012.
The Madhya Pradesh Government and the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests have been informing the Supreme Court regarding this from time to time.
In the context of the Supreme Court’s directives dated April 17, 2014, Union Carbide’s 10 MT waste will be destroyed through trial run by the Central Pollution Control Board, New Delhi. The State Government and the State Pradesh Pollution Control Board will extend maximum cooperation. Action plan is expected from the Central Pollution Control Board. The remaining chemical wastes on the premises will be destroyed on the basis of results of the trial run of the 10 MT chemical waste in pursuance of the court’s directives.
The Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board has taken action on all directives received from the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests from time to time. The Madhya Pradesh Government will start incineration of chemical waste on the premises of the Union Carbide factory as soon as the action plan is received from the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests.