Apr

28

Will Pune be India’s next Bhopal?

April 28, 2008 posted by indiatime |

The government of Maharashtra has now given a go-ahead to Dow Chemicals to build a $100 million Research and Development facility in Pune. There are reports that indicate an unusual hastening and extraordinary facilitation of normal procedures to give a green signal to the company which still owes reparations to thousands of Indian citizens for one of the worst chemical disaster tragedies in history.

It is hard, even for a moment, to believe, that Dow Chemicals is not getting special favors from Indian government. Despite recent exposes of a Dow subsidiary paying off government officials to get approvals on poisonous pesticides, and despite Dow’s tainted history with its Indian companies, the government hasn’t come clean to people on if and why the approval process was subverted for Dow’s newest ventures in India. There is enough initial evidence suggestive of special favoritism that has led to Dow’s new plant in Pune:

1. The MIDC (Magharashtra Industrial Development Corporation) CEO approved Dow’s initial application in 48 hours.

2. The state pollution board approved Dow’s applications in a record time of a few months

3. The state allowed Dow to start construction on the site, way before environmental clearances came in.

4. The land in question is near Chakan, a town where the Maharashtra’s powerful NCP leader has been campaigning for an international airport for a few years. Needless to say, NCP is one of the parties sharing power in Maharashtra.

It has been reported that Dow’s plant in Pune is being set up to use hazardous chemicals. Seems we haven’t yet learnt any lessons from Bhopal’s terrible mishap 25 years ago. For the center and the state to pander to and serve a private corporation’s purpose and put the lives of millions of its citizens in danger with so much as a 48 hours of regulatory oversight, the whole episode has the stench of a Faustian pact of sorts. I am equally appalled by the docile ignorance of Pune’s sleepy young population who are so engulfed in making money, eating out, watching TV and disco dancing in the clubs, that they don’t see the lurking danger in their backyard.


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5 Comments so far

  1. Pune - The Next Bhopal? | DesiPundit on May 2, 2008 12:00 am

    [...] fears that the recent approval for a $100 million R&D facility by Dow Chemicals in Pune might be the next Bhopal in the making given the shady and hasty approval deals in the background and finds the apathy of [...]

  2. Never Mind on May 2, 2008 1:19 am

    A year ago, I was working in an environmental consulting firm based in Hyderabad and we were retained by an anonymous Chemical Manufacturing firm to perform an environmental impact assessment at a prospective site near Pune. As part of the regulation, to assess the environmental impacts, the industry is supposed to reveal the composition and quantity of all of its emissions, discharges into surface/groundwater and solid waste (if it is being dumped on site). However, I had to finish the project with very limited information about the proposed industry.

    Although I am not very skeptical about these things and most of the time they dont reveal too much information to protect their intellectual property, I wonder if that client was somehow related to Dow chemicals!!

    I have been reading a lot about Bhopal recently and it is not very pleasant. I just sincerely hope this is not another Union Carbide waiting to happen!!

  3. Rohan on May 2, 2008 3:43 pm

    Hi,

    The plant at Pune is actually a Zero-emission plant, which would not be looking after production but rather only R&D.

    Of course, my comment is based only on the media reports and the companies own claims, but I think they would not lie so blatantly about issues which can easily be caught.

    As to the earlier tragedy at Bhopal, we can only hope that the victims get their dues at the earliest.

    Again, the comment on the “youth of Pune” was completely mis-leading giving an impression that all of Pune’s youth is irresponsible and unaware of what is happening around them. Very bad generalization.

  4. Ashutosh Jogalekar on May 2, 2008 9:04 pm

    While we indeed cannot make such a generalization, I also get the feeling that a larger proportion of Pune’s youth than would make us comfortable are involved in the aforementioned activities.

  5. Shridhar Damle on July 27, 2008 10:27 am

    Dow’s Chemcal plant in Pune:
    I strongly oppose to the estabkishment of a Dow Chemical Plant in Pune. All Puneris should fihjt foot and nail to oppose this plan. It looks that We have not learned any lesson after Bhopal disaster. As a previous Pakka Puneri now sting in USA I strongly condem this plan. Pune has enough environmental problems. All youngsters is arise and fight this out because their future is at risk. It is a sad situTION THAT YOUNG pUNERIS ARE ONLY INTERESTED IN MAKING MONEY AND HAVING A NICE TIME. sHRIDHAR dAMLE

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