Bhopal: A city frozen in its toxic past

Bhopal: An avalanche of grievances writ on every face! The scars of the tragedy are visible in every nook and cranny of Old Bhopal. The deadly waste is still lying in the Union Carbide factory, contaminating not only the soil and water but also the minds of the people.

Misguided and misinformed, the people are angry with the world - the politicians, the NGOs, the doctors, the civil servants, in fact every one who they believe is exploiting them. After 30 years of betrayal, all that they remember is that ghastly night that blighted their lives forever.

"No one could actually guess what happened, but the incident terribly forced everyone out of their home. The CM fled. The DM fled. The SP ran away and so did the VIPs of Bhopal; and the city was left with no guards and caretakers. Only the military people and medical students stayed to witness one of the most unfortunate events in Indian history. The killer gas leaked out of Union Carbide factory giving no chance to anybody to escape, barring a few lucky ones. 3000 people died on the very first day," recalls Champa Devi Shukla, one of the survivors of the ill-fated night of December 2-3, 1984. She is a well known face among the gas disaster survivors and 2004 Goldman Environmental Award winner.

The Old City is frozen in time. Nothing has happened since the disaster; the people remember nothing, care for nothing but are hoping for compensation that has never come. Election after election, politicians promise them speedy compensation and justice. These hapless people are incapable of thinking anything beyond compensation.

Governments come and governments go, both at the Centre and in the state. But nothing has changed.

"Bhopal as a continuing disaster is failure of Indian society, unprepared government and a failed medical system," said Sunita Narain, director general of Centre for Science and Environment at an event in Delhi.

Justice lost in Delhi-Bhopal politics

"We took a foot march from Bhopal to Delhi in 1989 to meet the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. But when we reached there he refused to meet us," said Rashida Bee, co-founder of Chingari Trust that she established with Champa Devi.

"In 2011, our CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan promised us a meeting with the Prime Minister over compensation, but he never did," said Rashida completing Champa Devi's sentence.

'NGOs don't make our lives any easier'

"Who cares for the poor. My life has become a living hell. 24 years ago, I was abandoned by my husband when I developed gynaecological complexities and couldn't conceive," said 50-year-old gas victim Suhasini Devi who stays near Berasia in Bhopal.

"I am confused whether to live in misery or die. Callous governments and mercenary NGOs don't make our lives any easier. We breathed the toxic gas, and we are now suffering in silence. Nobody wants to help us," she said.

When asked about the sincerity of NGOs, Champa Devi said, "There are some who make money and talk in figures. But we don't talk in statistics, since values and love can't be explained quantitatively."

"Health, compensation, waste disposal and justice continue to be our top priority," she said. "(Warren) Anderson has died, not the company. We still hope for justice," she added.