December 3, 1999 marks the 15th anniversary of the gas disaster in Bhopal, India. In the middle of the night on December 3, 1984, over 40 tons of Methyl Isocyanate (MIC) and other lethal gasses leaked from the American corporation Union Carbide's pesticide factory in the northern end of the city. It was a massacre. According to the Bhopal Peoples Health and Documentation Clinic (BPHDC), 8,000 people were killed in its immediate aftermath and over 500,000 people suffered from injuries. While most evidence points to corporate negligence, Union Carbide continues to blame a \"disgruntled employee\" for the accident.

The Bhopal Disaster

Background: Following Toxic gas leak in 1984 from Union Carbide Ltd. India’s Sevin manufacturing plant and resultant sudden closure, large number of chemicals were left unattended in plant premises. Concerned groups and population residing close by feared that these residual chemicals left over in plant and in solar evaporation ponds would percolate down to ground water and on consumption this toxic water would cause morbidities and may be mortalities among the population living in 14 localities settled around factory complex. Methods and Procedures: Hence, an epidemiological study was planned to establish the cause and effect relationship between the allegedly present toxicants in water and the observed symptomatic morbidities. Tools like visit to the area, secondary data review on water analysis and cross sectional morbidities survey in population were used for this purpose. Results: Through extensive review of literature it was found that there is no evidence to suggest that toxicants had reached either ground water or food chain in toxic doses. However, symptomatic morbidities survey did reveal statistically significant higher level of symptomatic morbidities among the resident living in affected localities in comparison to that of localities in control area. Conclusion: From analysis it can be concluded that the higher symptomatic morbidities could be due to earlier toxic gas exposure, confounding effect of aging, poor socio economic standards and bad environmental / sanitation conditions found in slums, poor water quality at provider and consumer end and repeated misleading propaganda resulting in to self perceived morbidities.

An epidemiological study of symptomatic morbidities in localities around solar evaporation ponds and behind union carbide factory, bhopal

The dynamics of urban settings can increase health disparities. This paper explores techniques for examining urban health inequities of non-communicable disease risk, using data from the city of In...

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/23748834.2020.1848327

Exploring urban health inequities: the example of non-communicable disease prevention in Indore, India

In India, the access to clean and safe drinking water to rural population is very limited, hence the Government of India has initiated multiple schemes to tackle the problem of huge health burden due to poor quality of water in rural areas. Under ‘Clean India Mission’ cost-effective, non-electric water filters were distributed (n=144 households) in Barkheda Bondar village of Bhopal district in Central India and after one year of usage, a questionnaire based door-to-door survey was conducted to assess the usage and perceived health benefits of water filters by the users. The study showed that the acceptance of water filter among rural population was about 82% and 69.4% of the population reported reduction in the frequency of various water-related diseases. The present study shows that the use of non-electric water filters on mass basis in rural India is efficacious for providing safe drinking water.

/pdf/perceived-health-benefits-of-using-non-electrical-water-277loc9ddu.pdf

Perceived Health Benefits of Using Non-Electrical Water Filters under ‘Clean India Mission’ Programme in a Village of Bhopal

Objective: A cross-sectional study was undertaken to assess the prevalence of morbidities in communities residing at variable distances from the closed down insecticide manufacturing plant premises of Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL), Bhopal, India and to determine association of morbidities, if any, with their drinking water usage pattern and distance of localities from the UCIL plant. Materials and Methods: A total of 10,827 individuals belonging to 2,184 families, residing within 0-1 km (Stratum I) and 2.5-5.0 km (Stratum II) radial distances from UCIL plant were surveyed and 9,306 of them (86%) were clinically examined. Data were analyzed to examine the association between the groups of morbidities, likely due to biological and chemical water contamination, and the distance of locality from the UCIL plant. Multiple logistic regression was used to explore the risk factors for morbidities. Results: Nearly similar prevalence (25.3% in stratum I, 25.8% in stratum II) and the trend of all-cause morbidities were recorded in the two strata. While morbidities related to gastrointestinal tract system (P 0.05) was observed between the prevalence of morbidities, likely due to the consumption of biologically or chemically contaminated drinking water, and the distance of locality/stratum from the UCIL plant. Discussion and Conclusion: By and large similar pattern of morbidities were recorded in the two strata suggesting that the communities, irrespective of the distance of their residences from UCIL plant or sources of their drinking water, are equally vulnerable to various morbidities.

Morbidity profile of communities in Bhopal city (India) vis-à-vis distance of residence from Union Carbide India Limited plant and drinking water usage pattern.

Y Sabde

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Morbidity profile of communities in Bhopal city (India) vis-à-vis distance of residence from Union Carbide India Limited plant and drinking water usage pattern.