Pervez Bari
BHOPAL – The survivors of the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy, who have been sitting on dharna for more than a month to date, adopted a novel method on Monday to attract the attention of Madhya Pradesh and Central governments towards their demands pending for the last 37 years.
Today children of gas-exposed parents born with physical and mental development disorders and congenital disabilities sang songs urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chauhan to ensure their legal rights for compensation from Union Carbide/Dow Chemical.
Despite having scientific evidence, judicial acknowledgment, and the backing of the legal principle that children born to gas affected parents have suffered health damages as a result of exposure to their parents, the governments at state and centre continue to look the other way, said Rashida Bee, president Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationary Karmchari Sangh.
On the 35th day of their 37- day campaign, the disabled children born to the parents exposed to poisons of the Union Carbide Disaster sought answers from the central & state government. They asked: “When there is scientific evidence and official acknowledgment of health damage caused to children born after the disaster because of their parents’ exposure to Union Carbide’s gases, then why has the M. P. Govt. & Govt. of India not taken any steps to ensure that Union Carbide/Dow Chemical gives children of gas victims who have legal rights to compensation their due.”
Several research papers published in national and international peer-reviewed journals have reported the genotoxic impact of the exposure to Union Carbide’s toxic gases. In addition, ICMR’s own study has reported high pregnancy loss in women exposed to toxic gas till five years after the disaster.
The parent organization of the National Institute for Research on Environmental Health (NIREH) decided not to publish the results of its 2016 study that found congenital disabilities in babies of gas-exposed mothers to be seven times higher compared to those non-exposed mothers. “While the findings of this study should have been used to substantiate the Curative Petition for additional compensation from Union Carbide/Dow Chemical but the study on adverse health impact on children was buried”, said Rachna Dhingra of Bhopal Group for Information & Action.
The October 3, 1991 judgment of the Supreme Court directed that at least one lakh children born to gas-affected parents must be provided with medical insurance coverage. However, to date, not a single child has been provided coverage. The 10-year-old Poonam Ahirwar, born to gas-affected parents, suffers from a congenital disability known as Erb’s palsy, where her neck and legs have restricted movement. Similarly, 19-year-old Mohammad Zaid, a child of gas-exposed parents, suffers from CTEV (Congenital talipes equino varus) and other physical deformities. Both urged the Prime Minister and Chief Minister to fulfill their demands of legal rights of compensation so they can lead a life of dignity.
The Congenital talipes equino varus (CTEV), often known as “club-foot”, is a lower limb’s common but little-studied developmental disorder.
In 2018, a Supreme Court advocate arguing the petition for enhancement of compensation sought “corroborative evidence like data on the effect of Bhopal gas leak on the offspring of Gas Victims”. However, despite having this evidence, the state and central governments have refused to share this information in the SC in the petition pending damages against the responsible corporations. This is just another example of ongoing collusion of the Central government with Union Carbide and its owner Dow Chemical, said Nousheen Khan of Children Against Dow-Carbide.
Through the Campaign – “Bhopal Disaster: 37 years; 37 questions” – the organizations wish to highlight urgent concerns regarding compensation, criminal justice, medical, economic, and social rehabilitation, and environmental remediation of polluted lands that need to be addressed to stop the on-going disaster.
