The Bhopal Gas Tragedy

The Tragedy Contd...

Dr Loya, UCIL's official doctor in Bhopal replied, "It is not a deadly gas, just irritating, a sort of tear gas."⁷ Unofficial estimates put the death toll at over 16,000. A study carried out by a Non Governmental Organization in March, 1985 showed that between 50% - 70% of the non-hospitalised population in exposed areas of Bhopal had one or more symptoms of MIC poisoning.

According to an epidemiological study sponsored by Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, in October 1989, 70% to 80% of the people in the severely affected communities and 40% to 50% in the mildly affected communities continued to suffer from MIC exposure related illnesses five years after the disaster. A house to house symptom survey in one community, conducted as part of a doctoral dissertation in Delhi University in early 1993, showed 65.7% people suffering from respiratory symptoms, 68.4% with neurological problems and 49% with ophthalmic symptoms. Among the women in the reproductive age, 43.2% suffered from reproductive disorders.

Union Carbide takes the Offensive

Following the accident, the GoI filed a compensation lawsuit against the UCC for an estimated US$3 billion. However, UCC felt that the GoI was to blame for the disaster.

In December 1986, UCC filed a countersuit against the GoI and the State of Madhya Pradesh. The company charged the governments with "contributory" responsibility for the leak of poisonous gases, saying both governments knew of the toxicity of MIC but failed to take adequate precautions to prevent a disaster. Under the two sections "First Steps At Control" and "Contingency Planning and Experience Help," UCC listed all the things that it did immediately following the first call it got about the tragedy.

The document said that vital decisions were made—the UCC facility making MIC in the US was shut down; a task force led by Warren Anderson was set up; and medical and technical teams were dispatched to the site of the tragedy "within 24 hours." The document also said that "Union Carbide had a contingency plan for emergencies."

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7] It was five past midnight in Bhopal, Dominique Lapierre & Javier Moro, Full Circle Publishing, 2001.

Case Details

Case Code : BECG009
Themes: Ethics in Business
Case Length : 09 Pages
Period : 1980-2001
Organization : Union Carbide India Limited
Pub Date : 2002
Teaching Note : Available
Countries : India
Industry : Chemicals

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