Bhopal Waste Disposal Underway After Four-Decade Delay

Indian authorities have removed hundreds of tonnes of toxic waste from the site of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy, one of the world's deadliest industrial disasters.

The gas leak from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal killed thousands in December 1984. Official estimates place the immediate death toll at 3,500, with more than 15,000 deaths in the years since.

On Wednesday, 337 tonnes of toxic waste were transported from the plant to an incinerator facility 230km (143 miles) away.

This follows a Madhya Pradesh High Court order on 3 December, which gave authorities a four-week deadline to dispose of the waste, criticizing decades of inaction.

The waste was packed in leak-proof bags by Sunday and loaded onto 12 sealed trucks by Wednesday. Officials estimate 3–9 months to treat it, but activists worry about health risks near the disposal site.

Union Carbide paid $470 million in compensation to the Indian government in an out-of-court 1989 settlement, but activists say justice and adequate remediation remain elusive.