Bhopal, March 13 (IANS) The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Friday directed the state government to submit a detailed plan for assessment and remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater in and around the defunct Union Carbide factory in Bhopal by March 23.

The direction by a bench of Justices Vivek Kumar Singh and Ajay Kumar Nirankari came as it heard the writ petition of an NGO working for the victims of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, seeking remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater in the surroundings of the Union Carbide factory and detoxification and time-bound action.

Responding to the writ petition, the state government filed an affidavit, stating that the remediation plan, including the assessment of contaminated soil and groundwater and the tendering process for cleaning up the surroundings, was underway and requested some more time.

After hearing the arguments from both sides, the bench fixed the matter for the next hearing on March 23.

Meanwhile, the affidavit, signed by Deputy Secretary, Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Department, Krishna Kant Dube, said that the department held a meeting on March 5 in compliance with the directions of the Oversight Committee/Task Force constituted by the Supreme Court in 2023.

"In the meeting presided by the Additional Chief Secretary, discussions were held on various issues such as assessment of remediation of contaminated soil and groundwater in and around the erstwhile UCIL premises, detoxification and decontamination of corroded plant and time-bound remediation," it said.

"As the Oversight Committee had suggested that the Madhya Pradesh government may undertake fresh studies with the assistance of NEERI and NGRI to quantify the soil and groundwater contamination, as well as the mercury spillage and the groundwater dumps. In this regard, the state government submitted the action plan including identification and finalisation of an agency/consortium of agencies to carry out the study," the affidavit further read.

It also mentioned that the state government has decided to utilise 87.74 acres of land (Union Carbide factory site) for various other purposes, including the establishment of a memorial, and an action plan will be prepared for this purpose.

The toxic waste from the defunct Union Carbide factory, weighing 337 tonnes, was shifted from Bhopal to the Pithampur Industrial site on January 1, 2025, and was completely incinerated at a private waste treatment facility by the end of June 2025.

The disposal of the toxic waste came more than 40 years after the Bhopal Gas Tragedy had occurred on December 2-3, 1984, causing the tragic death of more than 5,000 people. However, the contaminated soil at the site of the factory and three ponds located a few metres away (in the north direction of the factory site) still remains a challenge for the authorities.

--IANS

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