| On the 2 December 1984 at the Union Carbide plant a
routine maintenance operation was transformed into a disaster. Union
Carbide claims this was as a result of sabotage but whatever the original
cause the effects should have been contained. Instead a huge quantity
of MIC escaped from the factory and drifted into the sleeping city,
with catastrophic results. As the gas drifted into the city its toxic
effects killed hundreds while they slept and hundreds more as they
fled for their lives. Estimates say 8,000 were killed on that night
alone, with more than 200,000 injured.
Now, 20 years on, the suffering in Bhopal shows little sign of
improvement. The health effects were ruinous, the death toll continues
to grow and thousands remain disabled by chronic symptoms. The compensation
paid by Union Carbide is patchily distributed and no-one ever faced
criminal charges for the neglect that led to the disaster. The terrible
after effects of that one night in Bhopal continue to this day.
The show also features Swaraj, the local police superintendent
who worked to restore calm on the night. Heavily exposed to the
gas he is now a sick man, angry that justice as he sees it has not
been done. Shahid was left orphaned by the tragedy and himself suffers
breathlessness and dizziness. Today he helps victims of the gas
seek medical help. And Suman was a young technician at the factory
whose life was saved due to an oxygen mask. He could not prevent
the tragedy but was there to witness it first hand, a burden he
carries with him to this day, the release adds.
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