Bgt3

CORPORATE CULPABILITY, BHOPAL

The Bhopal gas
tragedy 1984 to ?
The evasion of
corporate responsibility

Barbara Dinham with Satinath Sarangi

Barbara Dinham is a SUMMARY: This paper describes the inadequacies in the response of the Union
sociologist and director of
Pesticide Action Network Carbide Corporation to the accidental release of the highly toxic gas, methyl
UK (PAN UK). She has kept isocyanate, from its plant in Bhopal, India in 1984. Over 20,000 people are estimated
links with Bhopal since the to have died from exposure to this gas since 1984, with some 120,000 chronically ill
disaster, organized a tour of
Bhopal survivors to meet survivors. Union Carbide fought to avoid compensation or to keep it very low. The
UK groups fighting long, much delayed process of distributing compensation focused on minimizing
industrial hazards, visited payouts to victims. The corporation tried to blame the accident on a disgruntled
Bhopal for the tenth and
fifteenth anniversaries, and employee, whereas key parts of the safety equipment designed to stop the escape of
promoted UK initiatives to the gas were not functioning or were turned off. The corporation has always sought
raise awareness and support
the survivors. PAN UK hosts to underplay the health effects and has refused to release its research on the health
the Bhopal Medical Appeal impacts of the gas (which could have helped develop more effective treatment). In
to raise funds for the work addition, the medical services in Bhopal have failed to develop a health care service
of the Sambhavna Trust.
that offers sustained relief and treatment to the communities most affected. This
Satinath Sarangi is a paper also describes the work of the Sambhavna Trust, a charitable body set up to
metallurgical engineer by work with the survivors, and its programme to develop simple, more effective, ethical
training, with no regrets
about straying from his and participatory ways of carrying out research, monitoring and treatment. Its
profession. For the last 16 programmes combine traditional and western systems for health care and it ensures
years in Bhopal, he has been
part of the survivors’ that individuals and communities are actively involved in all aspects of public health.
agitations, medical care and
research efforts, publication
initiatives and solidarity
campaigns on the disaster. I. THE INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT
In 1995, he established the
Sambhavna Trust and IN DECEMBER 1984, the worst industrial accident on record occurred in
launched the Bhopal
People’s Health and Bhopal, India. Just four hours after the leak of methyl isocyanate (MIC), the
Documentation Clinic. He works manager at Union Carbide’s Bhopal plant said: “Our safety measures
also writes fiction for
children. are the best in the country.”(1) Barely 100 yards from his office, thousands of
people lay dead and dying. Tens of thousands more were being crippled
The authors can be for life. People were terrified, as they woke up to find themselves
contacted at the Pesticide
Action Network (UK), 49 surrounded by dense poison clouds. Neither Union Carbide nor the local
Effra Road, London SW2 authorities provided direction, support, help or guidance that night or in
1BZ, UK; e-mail: barbara the following days. In the intervening years, victims’ organizations have
dinham@pan-uk.org; web:
http://www.pan-uk.org fought relentlessly for justice, recognition and support. They have received
little either through the legal process or from the Indian government. Today,
1. Dinham, Barbara (1989),
Lessons from Bhopal,
the toxic legacy of the disaster continues with tens of thousands of survivors
Solidarity for Survival, suffering from chronic illnesses, the persistent presence of poisons in the
Journeyman, London. soil and water and breast milk, the alarming rise in cancers and congenital
problems among children born to exposed people. An initiative in the city,
the Bhopal People’s Health and Documentation Clinic, started by the Samb-
Environment&Urbanization Vol 14 No 1 April 2002 89


havna Trust, demonstrates an important practical way of supporting and
working with communities victimized by corporate crime.

II. UNION CARBIDE RESPONSE: DELAY AND
DENIAL

UNION CARBIDE CORPORATION (UCC) continues to flee from the
ongoing criminal case in India which relates to the leakage of deadly MIC
from its pesticide factory in Bhopal. The web site maintained by UCC on
Bhopal still claims that the “...incident was caused by a disgruntled employee
who introduced a large volume of water by connecting a water hose directly to the
tank.”(2) The basis for the company’s position is a report by the public rela- 2. Web site maintained by
tions firm Arthur D Little, paid for by Union Carbide but which they claim Union Carbide:
www.bhopal.com
to be an “independent investigation”. The reality is that MIC is a highly
volatile gas which must be stored at zero degrees centigrade. Yet the refrig-
eration unit in the factory had been shut down to cut costs as per direc-
tions from Union Carbide headquarters in Danbury, USA. Any escaping
MIC should have entered a caustic-soda scrubber to be neutralized. The
scrubber was not operating on the night of the disaster. Escaping toxic
gases were supposed to go to the flare tower, where a pilot flame would 3. Morehouse, Ward and M
burn off the gas. The pilot flame was off and the pipeline to the flare tower Arun Subramaniam (1986),
disconnected. Water sprayers designed to take care of leaks in the atmos- “The Bhopal tragedy: what
phere did not have sufficient pressure to reach the required height.(3) The really happened and what
it means for American
sabotage claim, therefore, is unsustainable. But even if it were credible, the workers and communities
hazardous design of the plant and the blatant lack of safety systems as well at risk”, Council on
as reckless cost-cutting are sufficient to underline the liability of the US International Public Affairs,
New York.
corporation.
The corporation and its chairman, Warren Anderson, were charged with
manslaughter, grievous assault and other serious offences. They have,
however, stayed away from the court proceedings for the past ten years
and the Indian government has yet to take any steps towards extraditing 4. Dembo, D, W Morehouse
either Anderson or representatives of Dow Chemical. and L Wykle (1990), Abuse
In addition to denying any responsibility, UCC has adopted multiple of Power. Social Performance
of Multinational Corporations:
strategies for corporate survival.(4) It fought for the legal case to be heard the Case of Union Carbide,
in India, where any compensation was likely to be lower than in the US; it New Horizons Press, New
delayed the legal case at each stage in its progress through the courts; it York.
divested itself of products that could be targeted by a consumer boycott
campaign (Eveready-TM batteries, anti-freeze-TM automotive products,
gladwrap-TM plastic food wrap and pesticides, including carbaryl and
aldicarb, sold as Sevin and Temik, which had been made at the Bhopal
plant); it took on debts of over US$ 6 billion to put off potential corporate
raiders; in spite of the fact that Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) was
51 per cent owned by UCC, and the plant fully designed by UCC, the
5. US Second Circuit Court
company argued that the subsidiary was independent; and, finally, in 1989 of Appeals in Manhattan
it persuaded the Indian government to settle without consultation with ruled that UCIL was a
the victims.(5) separate and independent
The outcome of the protracted legal battle was disastrous for those legal entity managed and
staffed by Indian citizens,
affected by the gas. The government of India had appointed itself the sole 14 January 1987.
representative of the Bhopal victims. It originally claimed compensation
in the order of US$ 3 billion but settled for just US$ 470 million. As per the
settlement, the Indian government agreed to pay any additional claims.
The long process of distributing compensation focused on minimizing
payouts to victims. Tens of thousands had lost the ability to work, were in
90 Environment&Urbanization Vol 14 No 1 April 2002


debt from the costs of medical treatment and have continuing extensive
medical expenses.
UCC’s determined response to evade responsibility and compensation
claims was driven by the need to convince shareholders and financial
markets that the company would not be crippled by legal actions and
massive financial claims on assets and profits. While this is a standard
corporate reaction, there is no doubt that UCC went to extraordinary
lengths to achieve its goal. It was aided and abetted by the financial
markets, whose main concern after the disaster was whether and how the
company would survive.
The financial world closed ranks. Not one company, industry organi-
zation or government body publicly argued for the closure of Union
Carbide and the stripping of its assets to pay full compensation to those
affected. Internally, transnational corporations producing hazardous chem-
icals reviewed their production strategies and, as a result of Bhopal, many
raised the standards of their plants in developing countries. But for the
people of Bhopal, these actions were of little consequence.
In a UCC plant located in Beziers in the south of France, and producing
the same pesticides as in Bhopal, the trade union had undertaken a
successful campaign at the end of the 1970s for safer production. Expen-
6. “Hazards of pesticide
production – trade union
diture on health and safety reached an unprecedented 20 per cent of capital
organization in Union costs. The Beziers plant did not store MIC but made batches only as
Carbide, France” (1986) in required for production. After the disaster, the Beziers trade union
The Bhopal Papers: A Report expressed concern that it had not made contact with other Union Carbide
of a Conference on the Bhopal
Tragedy, Transnationals plants to pass on details of its success.(6) However, corporate strategies –
Information Centre, still common to all transnationals – forcefully discourage contact between
London and Bhopal Victims separate plants, often even between plants in the same country, let alone
Support Group.
across continents. Collective bargaining on wages, conditions and occu-
pational safety and health is actively prohibited.
The gas-affected population of Bhopal has formed a number of organi-
zations which are still fighting for “justice”, particularly in the form of
criminal prosecution of the corporate leaders of UCC and the right to a
dignified disease-free life. Most actions have failed but the survivors’
organizations have not given up their struggle. In November 2001, they
7. US Second Court of gained one victory with a decision by the US Second Circuit Court of
Appeals, August Term, Appeals that overturned earlier rulings and affirmed the environmental
2000. Argued 16 April 2001, damage claims of survivors.(7) Seven individual victims and five organi-
decided 15 November 2001,
Docket No 00-9250.
zations representing survivors and activists filed the suit against Union
Carbide and its former chairman Warren Anderson. The court decision has
made it possible to access corporate documents from Union Carbide
regarding its control and environmental safety guidelines at the Bhopal
factory. Union Carbide and Warren Anderson are now answerable to
charges of contaminating the groundwater and soil in and around the
Bhopal factory premises and causing health damage to thousands of
people. In February 2001, Union Carbide Corporation was taken over by
Dow Chemicals. Victims’ organizations are angry that the corporation
responsible for the worst industrial accident in history could enter obliv-
8. Bhopal Gas Peedit ion. However, the organizations believe that following the court ruling, it
Mahila Stationery
Karmachari Sangh et al. will “...be possible to make Dow Chemical answer charges of poisoning thousands
(2001), “Bhopal activists of people residing in the neighbourhood of the abandoned factory.”(8) Significantly,
declare victory in US Dow has opened four subsidiaries in India and has substantial investments
courts”, press release, 29
November, in this country, unlike Union Carbide which has folded its operations in
www.corpwatch.org India. Judgments against Dow in India are likely to be more easily enforce-
able than those against Union Carbide.


III. THE HEALTH LEGACY

THE FULL IMPACT of MIC on health remains unknown. Union Carbide
continues to claim as “trade secrets” over 60 years of research (including
research on human “volunteers”) on MIC. Local victim support organiza-
tions believe that the withholding of information and the propagation of
misinformation has impeded health care efforts.
Immediately after the disaster, the Indian Council of Medical Research
(ICMR), a government agency, was nominated to monitor the health
effects. ICMR estimated, on the basis of mortality figures, that over 520,000
exposed persons had poisons circulating in their bloodstream causing
different degrees of damage to almost all the systems in the body. The
ICMR stopped all research on health effects in 1994 and has yet to publish
the findings of 24 research studies involving over 80,000 survivors. The 9. “The Bhopal gas tragedy,
1984-?” (1988), Report from
official agency for monitoring deaths was closed in 1992. the Sambhavna Trust,
The Sambhavna Trust was established in 1995 as a charitable inde- Bhopal, India.
pendent body working with Bhopal survivors through medical care,
10. According to data
research, health education and information dissemination. In September published by the state
1996, using funds raised primarily by a public campaign in the UK, it estab- government in 1998, the
lished the Bhopal People’s Health and Documentation Clinic.(9) The clinic’s difference in mortality
between exposed and
research indicates that well over 120,000 chronically ill survivors are in unexposed populations was
desperate need of medical attention, and an estimated 30 people are dying 4.33 per thousand in 1997,
every month from exposure-related illnesses.(10) While official figures which works out at 2,165
report over 5,000 deaths attributable to the exposure, a government agency, deaths attributable to
exposure in 1997 alone.
the Centre for Rehabilitation Studies, reported 2,165 deaths attributable to Data published by the
toxic exposure in 1997 alone. Unofficial, and more correct, estimates place Centre for Rehabilitation
the current death toll at over 20,000. Studies, an agency of the
state government, show
Union Carbide continues to underplay the health effects. Its web site that there were 380 deaths
says “...severe injury to the lung is limited to a small percentage of the population attributable to exposure to
and there is no serious residual eye disease. Medical studies have shown that Carbide’s gases in the year
massive, one-time exposure to MIC has not caused cancer, birth defects or other 2000.
delayed manifestations of medical effects.”(11) 11. www.bhopal.com
The work of the Sambhavna Trust and full hospital beds in the city say
otherwise. Breathlessness, a persistent cough, diminished vision, early-age
cataracts, loss of appetite, menstrual irregularities, recurrent fever, back
and body aches, loss of sensation in limbs, fatigue, weakness, anxiety and
depression are all common symptoms of survivors. There is evidence of
an alarming rise in cancers, tuberculosis, reproductive-system problems
and other problems such as growth retardation among children born after
the disaster.
The absence of medical information means that local hospitals have no
treatment protocols specific to the exposure-induced multi-systemic prob-
lems that exist in Bhopal. Of the two official publications resembling treat-
ment protocols, the most recent by the ICMR is 11 years old and covers little
except the management of respiratory problems. Most of the medical
community in Bhopal is not aware of the existence of this document. The
state government has spent over US$ 43 million on health care but has failed
to offer sustained relief, leading to a proliferation of private doctors and
nursing homes. In the severely affected areas, most of the meagre compen-
sation has been spent on private doctors, nearly 70 per cent of whom are
not professionally qualified. Drugs for temporary symptomatic relief have
been the mainstay of medical care ever since the morning of the disaster.
The indiscriminate prescription of steroids, antibiotics and psychotropic
drugs is compounding the damage caused by the gas exposure.


12. Bertell, R and G Tognoni
(1996), “International IV. NO LACK OF HOSPITALS – ACUTE LACK OF
medical commission on TREATMENT
Bhopal: a model for the
future”, National Medical
Journal of India Vol 9, pages
DESPITE REPEATED ADVICE from many medical professionals, a
86-91; also Cullinan, P, S D community health perspective has failed to inform health care delivery
Acquilla and V R Dhara among the gas-affected population.(12) Budgetary allocations to commu-
(1996), “Long-term nity health services have remained at under 2 per cent and there are no
morbidity in survivors of
the 1984 Bhopal gas leak”, community health workers operating from the hospitals. As a conse-
National Medical Journal of quence, such vital areas as health education and community involvement
India Vol 9, pages 5-10; and in medical management remain neglected.
Ministry of Concern for
Public Health, Buffalo NY There is no shortage of hospitals in Bhopal. So many government hospi-
and the International tals have been built since the 1984 disaster that an independent medical
Institute of Concern for investigation by the International Medical Commission on Bhopal
Public Health, Toronto, observed that there are more hospital beds per 1,000 population there than
Canada (1996), International
Perspectives in Public Health in the US or Europe.(13) These large hospitals, however, are not situated near
Vols 11 and 12. the areas most affected by the gas; the expensive equipment installed in
them is seldom used; and treatment offered addresses only symptoms. All
13. An observation made by
the International Medical hospitals fail to document the health status and treatment given to
Commission on Bhopal, an hundreds of thousands of survivors under long-term medical care, and
independent medical there are no consistent patient records.
investigation undertaken
by doctors in 1994: see
In 2000, the Bhopal Hospital Trust (BHT), built with funds from the
reference 12, Bertell and sale of Union Carbide’s Indian shares that had been confiscated in the
Tognoni (1996). criminal case, opened to patients. It is now an independent trust based in
the UK that is part of the Indian Bhopal Memorial Hospital Trust
(BMHT). The BMHT operates “community clinics”, with facilities for the
14. See reference 11. treatment of eye, lung and heart problems(14) – although it should be
noted that heart problems have not been associated with exposure to
MIC. When Rajiv Bhatia, Medical Director in the Department of Public
Health, San Francisco, audited prescriptions given to over 400 patients
15. Rajiv Bhatia (1999), he found that “...treatment is not based on specific organ system pathologies and,
“Analysis of Bhopal
hospital trust drug rather, that drugs are prescribed for short term symptomatic relief of non-specific
prescription data – symptoms.”(15)
preliminary results”, Given the nature of the problems of chronic exposure-induced illnesses
unpublished report,
December.
and the need for continuous medication, systematic efforts to find non-
toxic drug alternatives or drug-free therapies are long overdue. Such a
search is even more imperative in the context of rich possibilities in long-
established indigenous health care systems in India. Systems such as
Ayurveda, Unani and yoga, that are known to provide sustained relief
without contributing to the toxic load, have been given only token recog-
nition in the official system of medical care. The government budgetary
allocation to medical care under these systems is under 1 per cent.

V. CREATING POSSIBILITIES: SETTING UP THE
SAMBHAVNA TRUST

IT IS INDEED a gloomy background. A people surviving the most grue-
some odds. A company carrying on with business as usual. A government
that is about to close its files on the “expendable people” of Bhopal. And a
prevalent system of health care most possibly doing more harm than good.
This background provided the context for the Sambhavna Trust’s exis-
tence. “Sambhavna” is a Sanskrit/Hindi word meaning “possibility” – or,
if read as “sama” “bhavna”, it means “similar feelings” or “compassion”.
In the prevailing situation of despair in Bhopal, the workers and support-


ers of Sambhavna believe that the possibility of stopping the medical disas-
ter in Bhopal lies in generating compassion.
The work done by the Sambhavna Trust in the last six years shows that
it is possible to evolve simple, safe, effective, ethical and participatory ways
of carrying out research, monitoring and treatment within the realities of
Bhopal. However, Sambhavna is small relative to the magnitude and
complexity of the disaster. Its clinic has provided direct treatment to about
11,000 people and has provided support to about the same number
through its health initiatives in ten communities close to the Union Carbide
factory.
The Sambhavna clinic’s white walls follow the curve around the corner
of two quiet streets, half a kilometre from the disused Union Carbide
factory. It is still a long walk for most of the survivors who come for care,
and many come on cycles or in auto-rickshaws. It is a modest-sized resi-
dential building that has been renovated for use as a clinic. A tall and shady
mango tree, a tiny herb garden and rows of potted medicinal and flower
plants create an ambience of tranquillity.
Of the 20 staff members, 9 are survivors of the disaster, 8 are women
and 4 are qualified in medicine, 2 of whom are specialists. Employees are
paid well in comparison to those in other local non-government institu-
tions and a ratio of 1:3.5 is adhered to in determining minimum and
maximum salaries. Most, if not all, of the decisions regarding the day-to-
day and long-term work of the clinic are taken by consensus at the weekly
meeting of the full-time staff members. A coordinator is chosen every two
months from among the staff members.
The Sambhavna clinic carries out a range of interlinked activities:
medical care, community health work, research and monitoring, docu-
mentation, seminars and training.

VI. MEDICAL CARE

PROVISION OF APPROPRIATE medical care in the Bhopal People’s
Health and Documentation Clinic is one of the central activities of Samb-
havna. It is based on clear principles, including that therapy must not
compound the injuries sustained as a result of exposure and must be based
on the specific complex of symptoms rather than on individual symptoms.
A proper system of registration and constant monitoring of the effect of
therapeutic intervention and research on the health status and efficacy of
treatment must be integral to the provision of medical care. The medical
care utilizes a range of services, in particular allopathic, Ayurvedic and
yoga. The pathology laboratory carries out routine microscopic and
biochemical tests on blood, urine, sputum and vaginal and cervical smears.
The clinic takes care to eliminate unnecessary and harmful drugs and to
include Ayurvedic and yoga therapies in the overall treatment regime. All
medicines are provided free of cost and more than 60 are produced from
herbs in the clinic itself. Utmost care is taken to ensure that people are well-
informed about prescribed medicines.

VII. COMMUNITY HEALTH CARE

SAMBHAVNA’S APPROACH TO community health consists of empow-
ering the community and individuals to take control of their health. The


Table 1: Medical services and achievements,
1 April 2000-30 September 2001
Care offered Patient visits

Allopathic treatments 12,813

Gynaecological care: the clinic is the only facility in Bhopal 1,580
providing regular cervical screening, examination and treatment
to survivors

Mental health care (visiting psychiatrist two days a week): 2,336
survivors suffer panic attacks, insomnia or disturbed sleep,
anxiety, depression, irritability and impaired memory

Ayurvedic care: prescriptions of medicines and massage therapy 9,256
described in standard texts rather than factory-manufactured
drugs; predominant use of herbal drugs over mineral
preparations; and use of modern investigative facilities and tools
for objective assessment

Yoga: different combinations of physical postures, breathing 348
exercises and cleansing actions that positively impact the
systems and organs related; particularly beneficial for those
suffering chronic diseases involving the respiratory, musculo-
skeletal, neurological and endocrine systems

four community health workers are the only ones of their kind in all
Bhopal. The community health team surveys have investigated tubercu-
losis (TB) care and health education, monitoring and house visits. The team
has conducted door-to-door surveys in five communities with a total
population of about 10,000 to generate a database on the demography,
health and health care status as well as the social, economic and environ-
mental condition of the residents. Health workers identify persons in need
of special medical attention and ensure that this is made available either at
the Sambhavna clinic or elsewhere.
Sambhavna pays special attention to the control of tuberculosis at a
community level. Despite official knowledge of the unusually high preva-
lence of tuberculosis in the survivor population (over three times the
national average), there are no official TB initiatives. Work in TB care
consists mainly of education, identification of persons with symptoms,
supervision of treatment and constant health monitoring. The “patient
leaders”, recovered TB patients who provide effective inspiration and
guidance, share much of this work.

VIII. RESEARCH

WITH ITS LIMITED resources, Sambhavna has completed four research
projects and several more are underway. The government agency has
wound up its office for monitoring exposure-related mortality and, accord-
ing to survivors’ organizations, has maintained a consistent policy of
underestimating health impacts. Sambhavna is monitoring exposure-
related mortality through “verbal autopsy” (VA), a scientific method used
for establishing the cause of death of individuals in a community. This is
particularly useful in determining the cause of death in situations where
the proportion of deaths occurring under medical care is low and where no
autopsies are carried out. Investigations and interviews with relatives are


submitted to a VA assessment panel consisting of three eminent Indian
physicians. The Head of the VA group at the London School of Hygiene
and Tropical Medicine, UK is the adviser to the project. The information
collected up to 31 March 2001 shows that in the 81 cases of death moni-
tored through the project, 56 cases (69 per cent) showed a strong associa-
tion between MIC exposure and death.
Another research project assessed drug distribution in gas-affected
Bhopal and found that only 16 per cent of drugs sold were rational while
46 per cent were either harmful or useless.
In 2001, with the help of voluntary workers, the clinic gathered data on
the physical growth of persons born between 1982 and 1986. These data
show that the next generation of survivors has also been affected by its
parents’ exposure to Union Carbide’s gases.
On the other hand, a follow-up of the effects of yoga therapy on chronic 16. “Effects of yoga
practices for respiratory
respiratory disorders has found significant and sustained improvements in disorders related to the
lung function in all persons and a discontinuation of medication by more Union Carbide gas disaster
than half of the persons in the study.(16) in 1984”, paper presented to
XVI World Congress of
Asthma, Buenos Aires,
Argentina, October 1999.
IX. DOCUMENTATION

MUCH INFORMATION ON the December 1984 Union Carbide disaster in
Bhopal and its aftermath is lost, unavailable or classified. A large part of the
information remains within the circle of bureaucrats, scientists, medical
researchers and academics. Government efforts to collect and distribute 17. See, for example, Bhopal
information are non-existent. It is difficult for non-governmental initiatives web sites www.bhopal.org,
to document the continuing disaster fully but there continue to be groups www.bhopal.net, the report
of the Permanent People’s
dedicated to providing information and to ensuring that the spotlight Tribunal on Industrial
remains on the plight of the victims.(17) The Sambhavna documentation Hazards and Human
unit works on collecting, collating and distributing medical and other Rights, www.pan-uk.org
information related to the disaster. Information is made available to the and a report by The Other
Media, Delhi, India, 2001.
clinic staff, survivors, researchers, journalists and others.

X. SEMINARS AND TRAINING

THE SAMBHAVNA TRUST has organized a range of seminars involving
local, national and international medical professionals, scientists,
environmentalists and survivors’ organizations. Seminars have addressed
current medical issues, gynaecological and obstetric problems, the
benefits and possibilities of Ayurvedic treatment, and there have also
been policy and awareness-raising conferences. Sambhavna members
have participated in training programmes on traditional therapies,
community control of TB and cervical cytology.

XI. FUNDING THE CLINIC

SAMBHAVNA’S FUNDS ARE obtained primarily through the compassion
of the international community, and consist particularly of small contri-
butions from a large number of individuals in the UK, Japan, US and India.
On the tenth anniversary of the disaster, the Bhopal Medical Appeal, Samb-
havna’s UK-based support group, published an advertisement in the
Guardian and raised around UK£ 70,000 from over 5,000 individuals.


Women from the survivors’ organization (Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh) on the 15th anniversary of
the Bhopal accident.

A demonstration by women from the survivors’ organization on the 15th anniversary of the Bhopal accident.



Subsequent runs of the advertising campaign have raised awareness and
collected an additional UK£ 50,000. The annual advertisement in Decem-
ber 2001 produced an extraordinary effect, so far raising a further UK£
40,000. Funds have been provided by a small number of foundations in the
US, Italy and Switzerland. Donations are also collected at the clinic from
survivors and their sympathizers.
Annual running costs for the Bhopal Peoples’ Health and Documenta-
tion Clinic have been under US$ 30,000. The major expenses are salaries,
the purchase of medicines and equipment, renovation and furnishing. The
clinic runs on a very tight budget and judicious attention to all expenditure
is required.

XII. CONTAMINATION FROM THE UNION CARBIDE
SITE STILL A THREAT
18. Labunska, I, A
THE CONTAMINATION OF groundwater in the neighbourhood of the Stephenson, K Brigden, R
Union Carbide factory was a serious problem even before the 1984 disas- Stringer, D Santillo and P A
Johnston (1999), The Bhopal
ter. Official and unofficial studies (including one by Greenpeace in 1999)(18) Legacy, Greenpeace
have established the presence in groundwater of highly toxic heavy metals Research Laboratories,
and organic chemicals that cause cancer and severe damage to almost University of Exeter,
every system in the body. For thousands of families in about ten commu- November.
nities, this is the only source of drinking water.
With the objective of making people aware of the long-term adverse
health effects of drinking polluted water, and to encourage them to organ-
ize themselves to remedy the situation, Sambhavna launched a health
education programme in one of the communities – Atal Ayub Nagar – in
July 2000. Perceptible changes were seen within two months. The resi-
dents of Atal Ayub Nagar collectively pressed demands for safe drinking
water before municipal officials. In September 2000, six water tanks, each
with a capacity of 10,000 litres, were placed at different locations in Atal
Ayub Nagar and filled with water from another part of the city.

XIII. LESSONS FROM LOCAL ACTION

SAMBHAVNA BELIEVES THAT the participation of individuals in a
community is crucial for the success of any community-based health
programme. Through educational campaigns and meetings, the clinic has
encouraged four communities to form health committees. Members of
these committees voluntarily accept responsibility for identifying indi-
viduals in need of medical attention, counselling regarding treatment,
organizing meetings and holding health camps in the communities. The
trust perceives its work as part of the survivors’ struggle in Bhopal and
works closely with the survivors’ organizations.
The importance and relevance of the work of Sambhavna is now being
recognized and it has been awarded a number of prizes, including the
Japanese Tajiri Muneaki Prize 1999, the Inner-Flame Award 2001 from the
state governor, and the Mead 2001 award from the USA.
The clinic would take on more if its resources were greater. It is partic-
ularly concerned that:
• the number of persons offered care represents only a fraction of the
survivors in need of special care;
• the clinic’s distance from the severely affected communities is a real


problem for a large number of persons;
• a substantial number of those under care have not received sustained
relief, and the problem of a recurrence of the symptoms remains;
• the patient load of individual doctors is high;
• epidemiological and clinical research studies on the consequences for
long-term health have not been conducted; and
• it has not yet been able to start regular treatment of cervical cancer, as
per schedule.
From experience, Sambhavna has derived a number of lessons. The
limitations of modern medicine in treating modern industrial diseases are
apparent in Bhopal, and the combination of traditional and western
systems of health care used in the clinic has had significant success and
should be studied worldwide. Individuals can, and should, be active
participants in the process of healing, and the community needs to be
actively involved in all aspects of public health. Systems of health surveil-
More details of the work of lance and environmental monitoring can be developed and can evolve
the Sambhavna Trust can be
obtained from the web site: through the active participation of those in a community who are suffer-
www.bhopal.org. To ing from exposure to hazards. In the case of Bhopal in particular, docu-
support the work of mentation of the long-term consequences of exposure is part of the
Sambhavna and the clinic,
contact the Bhopal Medical survivors’ ongoing struggle not to forget. Support for the work of the clinic
Appeal, Pesticide Action has shown that it is possible to depend upon the compassion of ordinary
Network UK, Eurolink individuals and to generate enough funds without corporate charities,
Centre, 49 Effra Road, large grants from foundations or government assistance. And it is possible
London SW2 1BZ; e-mail:
admin@pan-uk.org; web to generate opportunities for hope through creative and collective inter-
site: www.pan-uk.org. vention in a situation of despair.


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