A recent interim order from the Indian Supreme Court has acknowledged that 20 more housing colonies have become affected by the contamination of their groundwater, bringing the overall number to 42, and a team from the Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (IITR) was due in Bhopal, on the 2nd April, to begin collecting water samples.
The Bhopal Group for Information & Action (BGIA) is a member of the monitoring committee, appointed by the Supreme Court, and has been pressuring, for some time, to have this increase acknowledged. The contamination results from recklessly abandoned toxic waste, in and around the Union Carbide factory, having leached into the ground water aquifer and, until the dumped waste is cleared up, will continue to spread.
These dangerous chemicals can damage the brain, lungs, kidneys and liver, and cause cancer and birth defects.
The Times of India, April 3, 2018: ‘IITR team to sample water in 20 more gas-affected colonies in city’
Water Contamination briefing paper: https://www.bhopal.org/water-contamination-briefing/
Dow Chemical CEO to Retire Just as Supreme Court Says Contamination Disaster Spreading in Bhopal: https://www.bhopal.org/dow-chemical-ceo-to-retire-just-as-supreme-court-says-contamination-disaster-spreading-in-bhopal/
