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September 04, 2006

More Bhopal gas tragedy survivors await justice in US court

ZEE NEWS, AUGUST 28, 2006

New Delhi, Aug 28: Undeterred by the adverse verdict by a US court on an appeal by Bhopal gas tragedy survivors, a group has taken up the fight against Union Carbide Corporation in the same court.

A case filed by Ramavtar Sahu for compensation, medical monitoring and clean-up of toxic waste near Union Carbide's Plant in Bhopal as well as offsite water pollution is pending before the court of second circuit of appeals in USA.

"The Sahu matter has twelve plaintiffs alleging personal injury and health impacts from polluted water supply in Bhopal," their counsel H Rajan Sharma said from New York.

The two cases were among the many cases filed by the survivors of the world's worst industrial disaster in Bhopal on the night of December 3, 1984, which killed more than 3,000 people and seriously affected more than two lakh others.

The US court had earlier this month rejected the appeal of one Hasina Bi and 14 others for compensation and direction to union carbide to carry out clean-up operations in Bhopal.

"It (Hasina Bi's case) was a significant setback, (but it is not the end of the matter," he said, adding Bi's case had certain limitations as it was only for property damage from Union Carbide India Ltd (UCIL) factory.

Sharma said Sahu's case was different from the previous one and the verdict in Bi's case would not affect this case.

"The panel's opinion makes it clear that it was limited to the facts of Haseena Bi's case," he said and sought support from the Government of India to help resolve the Sahu matter.

Posted by bhola at 11:09 AM | Comments (0)

September 03, 2006

Union Carbide must clean Bhopal mess

UN OBSERVER, SEPTEMBER 2, 2006

BHOPAL - After an appellate court in the United States rejected claims by Bhopal city residents, seeking compensation from Union Carbide for environmental contamination around the site of the world's worst industrial disaster, plans are afoot to have the case transferred to India.

"Every setback presents us with new opportunities and only strengthens our resolve”, Satinath Sarangi, of the Bhopal Group for Information and Action (BGIA), one of several activist groups working with the survivors of a runaway reaction in Union Carbide's pesticides plant in this central Indian city in December 1984, that left an estimated 3,500-7,500 people dead and many more maimed.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34547

Posted by bhola at 11:36 PM | Comments (0)