The Bhopal Gas Tragedy, which claimed over 3,000 lives and caused immense environmental damage, remains one of the most devastating man-made disasters of all time. The tragedy was caused by a gas leak from a Union Carbide Corporation (UCC) pesticide plant in 1984, and since then, there have been various legal battles over the amount of compensation to be paid to the victims.
In a recent development, the Supreme Court rejected the Centre’s curative plea for enhanced compensation of over Rs 7,000 crore from UCC, which is now owned by Dow Chemicals. The court dismissed the petition, stating that the Centre’s decision to rake up the issue after two decades was not acceptable.
In fact, the Centre had earlier stated that the amount paid by UCC was sufficient to settle all the claims of the victims, and there was no merit in its plea for a top-up. Furthermore, Rs 50 crore of the compensation amount still remains unutilised.
On January 12, the successor firms of UCC argued that the depreciation of the rupee since 1989, when a settlement was arrived at between the company and the Centre, cannot be a ground to seek additional compensation for the victims.
While the court’s decision is disappointing for those seeking increased compensation for the Bhopal gas tragedy victims, it is important to remember that justice delayed is not justice denied. The tragedy continues to serve as a reminder of the need for stringent safety measures and accountability in industries that can have such devastating consequences. It is only by learning from such tragedies that we can hope to prevent them from occurring in the future.
