‘Union Carbide did not disclose hazards before starting factory’

BHOPAL: Union Carbide corporation did not declare that it will use hazardous chemical elements when they had given proposal for setting up the factory in Bhopal, said National Disaster Management Authority founder member N Vinod Chandra Menon.
He was presenting his report on 1984’s Bhopal Union Carbide gas leak incident and lessons learnt following the tragedy.
According to the report presented by him, keeping a wet handkerchief on nose could have neutralized the effect and saved many lives during the gas tragedy.
He was speaking at national conference on “Disaster Risk Reduction — An inclusive holistic approach” at Government Geetanjali Girls College in Bhopal on Thursday.
Moreover, when gas leak patients started reaching other hospitals, Dr Loya of Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) told those doctors that it is a minor leak that will just cause skin irritation for some time. He did not mention hazardous gases, including methyl isocyanate (MIC), which can reacts even if contacted from rusted machinery like it happened then.
“The idea of presenting this report is to list out lessons learnt and what we have been suggesting to states about disaster management preparation. We need to make people aware besides our forces about small steps that can prevent major disasters and subsequent deaths,” added Menon.
Presenting management strategies of Madhya Pradesh, Home Guards director general Maithili Sharan Gupt said, “We have started a web portal inviting experts to suggest disaster management strategies. Students of this field are also welcome to help us.”
A book and CD of researches on disaster management were also released on the occasion.