July 7, 2008 Bhopal 25 Years Later An article entitled "Decades
Later, Toxic Sludge Torments Bhopal" in the New York Times today
by Somini Sengupta, discusses the continuing aftermath of the
Union Carbide Bhopal disaster. The failure to clean up the mess
left by the disaster is attributed both to the failure of the
company and that of Indian government bureaucracy. The article
reports: Beyond who will pay for the cleanup here, the question
is why 425 tons of hazardous waste — some local advocates allege
there is a great deal more, buried in the factory grounds —
remain here 24 years after the leak? There are many answers. The
company was allowed to dump the land on the government before it
was cleaned up. Lawsuits by advocacy groups are still winding
their way through the courts. And a network of often lethargic,
seemingly apathetic government agencies do not always coordinate
with one another. Local children play in a "pond" filled with
chemical sludge. The ground water tastes of chemicals and
corrodes utens