MP HC to hear other parties before disposal of Union Carbide’s waste
Bhopal: During a court hearing in Madhya Pradesh on Monday, the court said it would hear concerns raised by the other parties as well and then provide further direction for the disposal of Union Carbide’s hazardous waste.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said on Monday that his government has submitted the status report on the Union Carbide factory’s hazardous waste shifted from Bhopal to Pithampur.
He added that the court expressed its satisfaction on compliance of norms during the process of collection of hazardous waste-defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal and shifting it to Pithampur.
“The Madhya Pradesh government has requested for six weeks, which the court has granted. During this period, the government will try to resolve the issues and make a consensus and then will seek further direction from the court for disposal of waste,” the Chief Minister said in a statement.
CM Yadav said the waste has been transported from Bhopal to Pithampur complying with the court’s direction and further steps would be taken accordingly.
“Our priority is to win the confidence of the people of the state. We assure that every step for disposal of hazardous waste will be done as per the court’s direction,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister also appealed to the people of the state not to believe in rumours and fake information regarding the disposal of hazardous waste.
During the hearing, the bench of Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Vivek Jain instructed the media not to give incorrect news on the issue of waste disposal.
The court made this observation after the state government submitted that unrest had been caused in Pithampur township due to fictitious and fake news regarding the Union Carbide waste disposal.
Notably, complying with the court’s December 3 direction, the chemical waste lying at the defunct Union Carbide factory was collected in a three-day operation and loaded in 12 container trucks transported to Pithampur, around 40 km from Indore on January 2.
The hazardous waste was lying at the Union Carbide factory premises after 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 people and leaving thousands with serious injuries and long-lasting health issues.