The Madhya Pradesh government decided to design a memorial to mark the infamous 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy in the district with an investment of Rs 180-crore.
The Bhopal disaster, also referred to as the Bhopal gas tragedy is considered the world’s worst industrial disaster. The tragedy occurred on the night of 2–3 December 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal.
Space Matters, a New Delhi-based design agency, had in 2005 won a commission to design a memorial to mark the Bhopal gas tragedy. The commission included retaining the original structure and revitalising 80 acres of land.
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#FLASH Bhopal Gas Tragedy memorial to be built in Bhopal with an investment of Rs 180 crores (approx)
1:53 PM – 16 Oct 2016
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It would come up on the premises of the defunct Union Carbide factory here from where toxic gas spewed out on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, wreaking havoc.
“Like Hiroshima Memorial, a memorial of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy will be built,” Minister of State for Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Vishvas Sarang said in Bhopal after inspecting the defunct factory.
The concept and the plan of the memorial are ready and the work would start in two to three months, he said.
Sarang said 10 tonnes of toxic waste lying in the factory has been disposed of by Ramki Private Limited, Pithampur. “We will request the Central Pollution Control Board to incinerate the remaining waste lying in the factory,” he said.
The state government was working hard to ensure that the victims of the gas tragedy got justice, he said.
NGO Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udhyog Sangathan (BGPMUS), which works for the survivors of the tragedy, thanked Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Sarang for announcement of the memorial.
BGPMUS leader Abdul Jabbar said it had been demanding memorial of the tragedy for the last two decades.
The state government should also request the Centre to strongly pursue the curative petition filed in the Supreme Court seeking compensation and medical facilities for the tragedy survivors, he demanded.
Survivors of the tragedy have set up their own memorial, Remembering Bhopal Museum, in a rented house on Barasia Road near the factory. Conceptualised by Rama Lakshmi, a journalist, the museum has audio recordings of nearly 50 survivors who are struggling for their rights, pictures and memorabilia.
