Forward Bloc joins Bhopal gas tragedy victims protest
April 3rd, 2008 - 9:04 pm ICT by adminNew Delhi, Apr 3 (ANI): The All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) cadres on Thursday joined a protest staged by victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy at the Jantar Mantar here.
The victims who have been seeking adequate compensation and rehabilitation were assured by the AIFB that the issue related to the setting up of a special commission to implement rehabilitation schemes and environmental remediation for the survivors to the gas tragedy affected persons would be raised in parliament.
“We are voicing our concern outside Parliament but we urge our party leaders and also our allies to raise the issue inside Parliament. We want to remind the government to set up the gas relief commission for the Bhopal gas disaster victims that it had promised a couple of years ago,” said Dharmendra Kumar Verma, an activist of AIFB.
Over 23 years after the one of the world’s worst industrial disasters, victims of the Bhopal gas leak have stepped up their campaign for justice.
At least 50 survivors of the Bhopal gas leak are camping here after a 37-day march from Bhopal.
This was for the second time that the victims were undertaking the grueling 800-kilometer trek from the Bhopal to the national capital.
More than 3,500 people died in the days and weeks after toxic fumes spewed out of a pesticide plan in Bhopal on the night of December 2, 1984. According to an official estimate, around 15,000 people have died since then due to cancer and other diseases.
However, activists put the death toll at 33,000, and say that toxins from thousands of tonnes of chemicals lying in and around the mishap place have seeped into ground water.
Union Carbide in 1984 accepted moral responsibility for the tragedy and established a 100 million dollar charitable trust fund to build a hospital for victims. Later Union Carbide was taken over by Dow Chemicals.
The company also paid 470 million dollars to the Indian Government in 1989 in a settlement reached after a protracted legal battle. The victims, on an average, received 25,000 rupees in case of illness and 100,000 rupees or so in case of a death in the family. (ANI)
- Bhopal gas victims protest to seek Obama's help - Nov 07, 2010
- Victims of Bhopal gas tragedy demand arrest of Warren Anderson - Nov 29, 2009
- Olympics boycott is on the table, claims Bhopal NGO - Feb 27, 2012
- Bhopal gas victims hold candle light vigil on 25th anniversary of holocaust - Dec 03, 2009
- 26 years on, Bhopal gas survivors rally for justice - Dec 03, 2010
- Paralympics urge to cancel Dow Chemicals sponsor - Feb 01, 2012
- Bhopal will remember its dead and dying - and how - Dec 01, 2010
- Bhopal gas survivors to stop trains on 27th anniversary - Nov 25, 2011
- Bhopal tragedy victims to protest during Obama visit - Nov 03, 2010
- Torch rally to mark Bhopal gas tragedy anniversay - Dec 02, 2010
- 'Parallel Games for disabled if Dow sponsors London Olympics' - Aug 08, 2011
- Survivors of Bhopal gas tragedy launch weeklong protest - Nov 28, 2009
- Bhopal gas tragedy survivor, activist Irfan dies - Feb 18, 2011
- Bhopal gas victims file RTI plea on nuclear liability bill - May 04, 2010
- 94 percent Bhopal victims not properly compensated: Activists - Dec 20, 2011
Tags: adequate compensation, bhopal gas disaster, bhopal gas leak, bhopal gas tragedy, bhopal gas tragedy victims, charitable trust fund, dharmendra, disaster victims, dow chemicals, environmental remediation, gas relief, ground water, indian government, industrial disasters, mishap, moral responsibility, party leaders, rehabilitation schemes, toxic fumes, union carbide
