Trucks that will carry the toxic wastes from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal. File photo
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Supreme Court on Tuesday (September 25, 2025) agreed to urgently hear petitioners challenging the transportation and dumping of hazardous chemical waste from the Bhopal gas tragedy site at Pithampur on Thursday (February 27, 2025) as the first case.
A Bench headed by Justice B.R. Gavai took the decision to hear the case without delay after petitioners made an urgent oral mentioning that a “trial run” of 10 metric tonnes of waste was going to be made on February 27.
Justice Gavai addressed the State counsel of Madhya Pradesh that the court was not going to intervene unless the transportation and dumping of the waste was proved to be a hazard to the local population of Pithampur.
The Bench, including Justice A.G. Masih, made it clear that the onus was on the State government to convince the apex court that its action would not endanger the health and lives of the public.
“We will call the case on February 27. You (State of Madhya Pradesh) get experts to tell us that you have taken ample care and back it with proof,” Justice Gavai addressed the State government.
The oral mentioning was made after the Madhya Pradesh High Court on February 18 directed the State to conduct the first trial run to dispose of 10 metric tonne of Union Carbide’s waste material at Pithampur facility on February 27 by taking all protocols into consideration.
“Knowing we are seized of the issue, the High Court should have stayed its hands,” Justice Gavai remarked.
The High Court order had come a day after the Supreme Court, on February 17, decided to examine pleas challenging its decision to allow the transportation and disposal of 337 metric tonnes of waste from the Bhopal site to the Pithampur facility. The top court had also issued formal notice to the Union government, the State of Madhya Pradesh and the State’s Pollution Control Board.
The petitioner, Chinmay Mishra, had moved the Supreme Court against the High Court’s December 2024 and January 2025 orders.
In December, the High Court had voiced its disapproval of the fact that the highly toxic chemical waste was lying buried in and around the abandoned Union Carbide factory site in Bhopal even 40 years after the methyl isocyanate gas leak claimed over 5400 lives.
The January order of the High Court had urged the media to not misinform the public about the disposal of the waste at Pithampur.
Senior advocate Devdatt Kamat, appearing for petitioner, had said the local population in Pithampur were “up in arms” against bringing the waste to their neighbourhood.
He had argued that Pithampur was an industrial area, thickly populated and situated only 30 km away from Indore city.
“There is not even a proper government hospital situated in Pithampur,” the petition has said.
Published – February 25, 2025 11:38 am IST