According to local groups, the current toll of dead has crossed 20,000 and a large number of people continue to suffer from exposure-related chronic illnesses of the lung, eyes, brain, heart, immune, hormonal, reproductive and other systems and are in desperate need of medical attention.
After the accident, Union Carbide abandoned the factory and left hundred of tonnes of chemical wastes which have seeped into the drinking water source of the neighbouring communities. Many people are forced to drink water that contains a cocktail of hazardous chemicals including
After the accident, Union Carbide abandoned the factory and left hundred of tonnes of chemical wastes which have seeped into the drinking water source of the neighbouring communities. Many people are forced to drink water that contains a cocktail of hazardous chemicals including
chlorinated benzenes, chloroform, trichloroethene and carbon tetrachloride. A 1999 study by Greenpeace found contamination levels to be far above U.S. EPA drinking water standards. Carbon tetrachloride was found at levels 682 times higher than standards in the US, chlorinated benzenes at 5-11 times higher, trichloroethene 50 times higher and chloroform more than 20 times above U.S. limits.
In February this year, Union Carbide managed to shed its name by becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of U.S.-based multinational Dow Chemicals.
In February this year, Union Carbide managed to shed its name by becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of U.S.-based multinational Dow Chemicals.
Dow Chemicals purchased Union Carbide for a sum of USD $9.3 Billion, thus creating the second largest chemical company in the world.
"Dow not only bought Union Carbide’s assets but its liability for the Bhopal tragedy and the environmental disaster which is continuing today. It must take responsibility for its toxic legacy, rehabilitate and fully compensate survivors and clean up the hazardous mess that is still poisoning many people in Bhopal," said Greenpeace campaigner, Hemant Babu.
"Dow not only bought Union Carbide’s assets but its liability for the Bhopal tragedy and the environmental disaster which is continuing today. It must take responsibility for its toxic legacy, rehabilitate and fully compensate survivors and clean up the hazardous mess that is still poisoning many people in Bhopal," said Greenpeace campaigner, Hemant Babu.