Bhopal gas tragedy: MP Cabinet approves Rs 1,000 per month additional pension to widows

The government of Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday announced an additional allowance of Rs 1,000 per month for the widows of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. More than 15,000 casualties were reported from the deadly gas leak caused at the Union Carbide Corporation’s pesticide plant on midnight of 2 December 1984. “This is in addition to the social security pension for the surviving widows of the Bhopal gas leak victims,” state Home Minister Narottam Mishra told reporters after a cabinet meeting. Furthermore, he added that the decision was objected to by the state’s finance department, but the step was taken anyway by his government to ensure the security of the widowed wives of the plant’s employees. 

In 2019, the Kamal Nath-led Congress government had shelved the pension plan for the bereaved wives, Mishra who is also a government spokesperson said, adding that the BJP government had authorized the bill in 2013. The pension was therefore resumed by his government to ensure the wellbeing of the families left behind by the Bhopal gas tragedy victims. 

Rachna Dhingra of NGO Bhopal Group for Information and Action hailed Mishra’s decision saying, "Several announcements have been made in the last one year, but these widows are yet to receive a single rupee into their account.” She further stressed that the widows of those who tragically lost lives in a gross tragedy haven’t received any pension since December 2019. They need to be paid immediately, Dhingra said, according to PTI. She further denounced the Gas Relief Department's policy, saying that there was “no clarity” due to a lack of recognition of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims. 

More than 20,000 injuries

As many as 15,000 had died after the methyl isocyanate (MIC) leak in the Union Carbide India Ltd’s (UCIL’s) Chemical factory. The city of the JP Nagar turned to a gas chamber with hundreds of thousands of people running on the streets, vomiting and dying due to the hazardous gas in one of the worst industrial disasters of India. The Indian government filed criminal charges. US-based multinational company, while more than 500,000 people filed claims in the case. The accident caused nearly 20,000 injuries due to negligence on part of the company, a claim that the US-based firm rejected during the independent expert review to the cause of the tragedy.