New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to intervene in a Madhya Pradesh High Court order regarding the disposal of toxic waste from the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy. The court upheld the directive for the shifting of hazardous material from the Union Carbide India Ltd (UCIL) site to Pithampur in the state's Dhar district.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih disposed of a petition challenging the December 3, 2024, order by the high court. This order instructed the state government to take immediate steps to remove the toxic waste, with the decision made after consulting an expert committee.
The bench noted that the high court's decision followed the input of an expert panel, including the directors of the National Environmental Engineering Institute (NEERI), the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), and the chairman of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). These institutions are recognized for their expertise in environmental matters, and the court emphasized that their recommendations had been relied upon in the past.
The bench also acknowledged an affidavit filed by senior advocate Nachiketa Joshi, representing the Madhya Pradesh government. The affidavit included the minutes of a meeting held on June 19, 2023, where experts from NEERI, NGRI, and CPCB had outlined their recommendations for the disposal of the waste. The state government’s decision to move forward with the disposal was taken after consulting the expert panel.
"The impugned high court order took a serious view of the state government’s delay in addressing the toxic waste issue," the bench observed. "It revealed that only after the high court’s direction did the matter progress. The high court is closely monitoring the disposal process, and in light of this, we see no reason to interfere with the order."
The top court further instructed intervenors, including civil society members, to raise their grievances directly before the high court, which will consider them. Additionally, parties were allowed to submit suggestions to the high court or the state government, which would then forward them to the expert committee for consideration.
Joshi informed the bench that the first trial run for the waste disposal, as mandated by the high court, was set to take place on Thursday.
The bench also emphasized that the order passed in open court would immediately take effect. Senior advocate Devadatt Kamat, representing the petitioner, argued that not all safeguards recommended by the expert panel had been implemented by the state government in the waste disposal process. However, the bench maintained that it could not override the expert committee’s opinion, which had approved the transportation and disposal of the waste.
Senior advocate Anand Grover, representing other intervenors, argued that civil society members working in Bhopal for decades should have been consulted before proceeding with the waste disposal. The bench, however, disagreed with this submission and directed the aggrieved parties to present their arguments before the high court.
The Supreme Court had previously requested authorities to provide details on the precautions taken for the safe disposal of the toxic waste. Approximately 377 tonnes of hazardous material from the now-defunct UCIL factory were transported to Pithampur, about 250 kilometers from Bhopal and 30 kilometers from Indore, for disposal at an industrial plant.
The 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy, one of the worst industrial disasters in history, occurred when methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leaked from the Union Carbide factory on the night of December 2-3. The disaster killed 5,479 people and affected more than 500,000 individuals. The petition filed before the Supreme Court highlighted the health risks to residents living within a one-kilometer radius of the disposal site.
In December 2024, the high court had reprimanded the authorities for failing to clear the UCIL site in Bhopal, despite directions from the Supreme Court, and set a four-week deadline for shifting the waste. The court also warned of contempt proceedings if its directive was not followed.
The shifting of the toxic waste began on January 1, 2025, with 12 sealed container trucks transporting the material for disposal. On February 18, 2025, the high court ordered a trial run for the disposal of 30 metric tonnes of waste, divided into three lots of 10 metric tonnes each. The first trial run of 10 metric tonnes was scheduled for February 27, 2025, with all safety protocols in place.
With PTI inputs
