Bhopal Gas Tragedy Victims Allege Betrayal From MP Govt, to Seek President's Intervention

Bhopal: The survivors of 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy on Wednesday accused the Madhya Pradesh government of gross betrayal over promised health and other facilities to them.

Organisations representing them have now sought an appointment from President Ram Nath Kovind when he visits the state capital on November 10.

State minister Vishwas Sarang in June 206, after assuming the portfolio for gas relief and rehabilitation, had promised health, employment and social benefits for the survivors on the basis of three-month scientific study of the victims and affected colonies. However, the study never happened, five organisations representing the survivors of the world’s worst industrial disaster told the media on Wednesday.

The minister had also promised bar-coded smart cards for the gas tragedy victims so that their centralised data could be accessed either at Bhopal Memorial Hospital or any of the six gas relief hospitals being run by the state government and treatment could be streamlines, Satinath Sarangi from Bhopal Group for Action and Information (BGIA) said.

“Not a single survivor has been issued the smart card till date,” he alleged.

The senior gas tragedy activist even claimed that anything regarding cleaning of Union Carbide site, infested with ‘toxic waste’, was yet to be done despite the fact the state government owns the land.

The state government had promised to continue Rs 1000 widow pension for women survivors but 17 months down the line, the pension is yet to resume forcing thousands of elderly women to live in abject poverty, BGIA worker Rachna Dhingra claimed.

A sum of Rs 80 crore has lying with the Department of Gas Relief and Rehabilitation but no efforts were made to ensure employment for the survivors’ kids which is really unfortunate.

With such attitude from the government, we are compelled to once again resort to our protests, Dhingra said.

“We are seeking an appointment from the President of India who is visiting MP on Nov 10 for briefing him about the hardships of the survivors,” she added.

Sarang could not be contacted to respond to the allegations.