New Delhi: A massive fire broke out on May 6 at the premises of the Union Carbide factory at Bhopal – the same site where the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy killed close to 4,000 people. No loss of lives or injuries have been reported yet, but an activist has claimed that when she requested authorities to investigate the matter, they appeared to be busy with the elections.
Smoke was seen billowing at around 3.30 pm in the afternoon from a warehouse of the factory, Free Press Journal has reported.
A plastic tank had purportedly caught fire. Five fire tenders doused the flames in around 20 minutes, the FPJ report said. Down to Earth, however, reported that the fire was brought under control after about an hour. The fire did not get a chance to spread.
DTE has further reported on how the factory, which was closed after 1984, is shut down only on paper.
Large holes in the walls facilitate easy passage. Dry bushes in the area could have caught fire, leading to the blaze, locals said.
Rachna Dhingra of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action (BGIA), which advocates for beside Bhopal gas tragedy survivors, has posted on X that when she took the case of the fire to the Madhya Pradesh pollution control board and gas relief department and asked it to investigate the matter, she was told that staff was busy in election duty.
“Potentially toxic fumes engulfed the neighborhood but we will never know the truth as officials from MP Pollution Control Board & Gas Relief dept could not find the time to investigate as all are busy with elections,” she wrote.
She also wrote that while the factory is abandoned, it is highly contaminated. “Thousands of tonnes of toxic waste lying in unlined pits and abt 347MT stored in a warehouse. It is supposed to be guarded 24×7 but none of the guards have any idea about this fire,” she wrote.
Elections to the Bhopal Lok Sabha seat will take place today, May 7.
