BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government submitted before the High Court on Thursday a status report on the recent three-phase trial run of the disposal of the defunct Union Carbide plant’s toxic waste. The government also informed the HC’s division bench that the remaining waste can be safely disposed of within a period of 72 days.
The HC’s division bench comprising the Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Vivek Jain, subsequently ordered that the exercise (incineration of the remaining waste) be done within time and in accordance with law, while adopting all safety measures.
During the hearing of the case on Thursday, the state government, while submitting the status report, informed the HC that the three-phase trial run of disposing 30 metric ton of waste (ten metric ton in each phase) in pursuance with the HC’s February 18 order, has been successfully completed.
Through the affidavit, the government also submitted that the remaining waste could be incinerated under the supervision of the central and state pollution control boards supervision, at an optimum feed rate of 270 kg per hour.
During the hearing, the HC reportedly also asked the state government to consider the suggestions by Bhopal Group for Information and Action (BGIA) – one of the organisations working since decades with Bhopal Gas Tragedy survivors – for the disposal of the toxic waste.
Importantly, during the last hearing in the matter on February 18, the HC had given the state government, clearance to conduct three-phase trial run of 30 metric tons toxic waste disposal at the treatment-storage-disposal-facility (TSDF) in Pithampur industrial town of western MP’s Dhar district.
In pursuance of the order, the three-phase trial run at three different feed rates (135 kg per hour in the first phase, 180 kg per hour in the second phase and 270 kg per hour in the third and final phase) was carried out at the concerned TSDF recently and subsequent status report submitted before the HC on Thursday.
Importantly, after a long wait of four decades, the 358 metric tons of toxic waste from the now defunct Union Carbide plant (which was responsible for the December 1984 worst industrial disaster) in Bhopal, was safely transported by the state government on January 1-2, 2025 night to the TSDF in Pithampur (Dhar) for disposal in pursuance with the MP High Court’s December 3, 2024 order.